Man facing federal child porn charges had photo of Ypsilanti Township girl, documents say

An Ypsilanti Township man is now facing federal charges in a child pornography case that came to light in October.

Brian E. Demarest, 41, was charged Thursday in a federal criminal complaint with receiving child pornography and possessing child pornography with intent to view.Â

The latest allegations say a female acquaintance saw a photograph on Demarest's cell phone of her 6-year-old cousin standing in front of her Ypsilanti Township home in pink underwear. Documents also accuse him of having thousands of pornographic images and videos of girls as young as toddlers.

Demarest made his first appearance on the new charges in Detroit federal court this afternoon. He's being held without bail as he awaits a detention hearing on Monday, court documents say.

Brian E. Demarest

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald Waterstreet said he didn't have details about Demarest's court appearance today. Assistant Federal Public Defender Richard O'Neill, who is representing Demarest, could not immediately be reached for comment tonight.

In court documents, Washtenaw County Sheriff's deputies say they found 3,508 images of pornography, the majority of which was child pornography, after examining memory cards for Demarest's BlackBerry - a smartphone that includes Internet access.

Investigators also recovered 75 images and 10 movie files of "suspected child pornography" after executing a search warrant on Google for Demarest's e-mail content, documents say.

Demarest is accused of exchanging e-mails with “someone saying they were a female child,” according to an affidavit filed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement Special Agent David Dominique.

One image Demarest received during the Feb. 22 e-mail exchange depicted a prepubescent girl, "lying naked on what appears to be a bathroom floor...," the affidavit says.

Other images recovered during the investigation depict a man sexually assaulting a female toddler and two naked girls at "the onset of puberty" posing in a kitchen, according to the affidavit.

Deputies also recovered a text message from a Wyoming telephone number sent on Oct. 13, stating, "Hey can I see a young girl video..." Investigators found other similar messages, records show.

Demarest, who worked as a handyman, has been under investigation since the female acquaintance came forward Oct. 26, documents say.

She told deputies she saw pornographic and child pornographic images on his cell phone on 10 occasions in three months, the affidavit says.

Demarest was arraigned in Washtenaw County court Oct. 30 on four counts of using a computer to commit a felony and two counts each of distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography.

Until today, he was being held on $500,000 cash bond in that case.

Lee Higgins covers crime and courts for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at (734) 623-2527 or email at leehiggins@annarbor.com.