Read more: Local, Crime, John Christopher Hargrove, Child Porn, Child Pornography, Pegram, Nashville, Memphis, Tennessee, Customs and Border Protection, Customs, Cbp, Veterans International Bridge, Brownsville, Cameron County, Rio Grande Valley, Texas, Mexico
John Christopher Hargrove
A 58-year-old man wanted in a Tennessee child pornography case is behind bars after being arrested at an international bridge in Brownsville.
Authorities said John Christopher Hargrove is at the center of an FBI child pornography case from Tennessee.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested the 58-year-old Pegram, Tennesse man at Brownsville’s Veterans International Bridge on Thursday.
Customs officers said Hargrove was driving back into the United States from Matamoros, Mexico when he was referred to secondary inspection.
A routine database check revealed that Hargrove was wanted by the FBI's Memphis office under child pornography, sexual exploitation of a minor and transportation of pornographic materials charges.
Court records show that Hargrove first came under investigation by the FBI in March 2006 when he sent child porn to an undercover agent in an AOL chat room.
An investigation revealed that the 58-year-old man had also sent child pornography through email in addition to having hundreds of images on his computer.
A federal grand jury in Nashville ultimately indicted Hargrove on child pornography charges in January 2008.
Court records show that he pleaded guilty in the case on November 6, 2009 and was supposed to be sentenced on November 13, 2009.
How and why Hargrove ended up at the U.S./Mexico border in the Rio Grande Valley was not immediately clearn but customs officials said their database was able to catch him.
"The use of a CBP database assisted CBP officers with the quick execution of this warrant and the subsequent arrest of the subject," said Brownsville CBP Port Director Michael Freeman.
Hargrove remains in custody at the Cameron County Jail where he is awaiting extradition back to Tennessee.
