Washougal man accused of having child pornography

A Washougal man accused of possessing more than 50 images of suspected child pornography made a first appearance Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court.

Arron C. Laird, 45, appeared on suspicion of 10 counts of possessing depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Near the end of October, law enforcement officers learned of a local internet protocol address downloading known child pornography. The IP address was later traced back to a residence where Laird lives with his girlfriend and roommates, according to a probable cause affidavit.

A search warrant was served Tuesday at the home in the 1500 block of I Street in Washougal, and electronic items inside the home were seized, the affidavit states. After examining the items, investigators with the Vancouver Police Department’s Digital Evidence Cybercrimes Unit found that Laird’s computer contained at least 54 files of suspected child pornography. One investigator reviewed 10 of the files and confirmed that they were child pornography, court records said.

Laird’s roommates told police that he would spend long periods of time alone in his bedroom on the computer and was protective of it. No one else appeared to know the password to the computer, according to court documents.

During his court appearance, Judge Scott Collier appointed Laird an attorney and set his bail at $75,000.

He will be arraigned Nov. 16.