On Thursday, Sept. 2, police in Hartford County arrested Drew J. McFarland, age 20, of South Windsor after a month-long investigation in which McFarland was found to have met a 15-year-old from Arizona online via an instant messaging app called Discord.
According to Sergeant Mark Cleverdon, of the New Windsor Police, McFarland used the app to converse with the victim and convince him to exchange explicit pictures since November of 2020.
During the investigation, it was determined that McFarland admitted to another person that he had engaged in this illegal conduct with a minor, Cleverdon said.
McFarland was arrested and charged with:
- Risk of injury to a child
- Promoting a minor in an obscene performance
- Importing child pornography
- Illegal possession of child pornography
- Enticing a minor by computer
McFarland posted a $100,000 surety bond and is scheduled to appear in Manchester Superior Court on Wednesday, Sept. 22.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Windham-Willimantic and receive free news updates.