Dustin M. Myers, a 39-year-old resident of Mossville, was charged on April 2 with two counts of child pornography after allegedly uploading child sex abuse material to Snapchat. At his detention hearing, the court granted the State’s Petition to Detain, which means Myers will remain in custody while awaiting trial.
The case highlights ongoing concerns about digital safety for children and the enforcement of sex offender registration laws. According to authorities, the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office received a CyberTip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on January 5 regarding a Mossville resident suspected of uploading illicit material via Snapchat.
Investigators obtained search warrants for both the Snapchat account and its linked Gmail address. After reviewing these accounts, they found child sex abuse materials present in both. The phone number associated with these accounts was traced back to Myers. Police arrested him on April 1; during questioning, Myers confirmed ownership of the accounts but denied that the illegal content belonged to him.
Myers also faces charges for violating sex offender registration duties by failing to register an active Snapchat account as required by law. He was previously required to register as a sex offender following a prior conviction in Woodford County and had previously violated registration requirements in another Woodford County case.
This investigation is ongoing, and anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office at 309-697-8515.
In related educational statistics, Peoria County reported an average student-to-teacher ratio of 15-to-1 during the 2022-23 school year among its schools according to data from the Illinois State Board of Education. Teacher absenteeism in Peoria County schools stood at 32.3% for that period compared with Illinois’ average rate of 35.6% as reported by state education officials.
Among local schools, Dunlap High School had the highest enrollment of white students (873), Richwoods High School had the highest number of multiracial students (182), Lincoln School led in Hispanic student enrollment (218), and Peoria High School recorded the largest Black student population (798) according to official records.
