QUEEN CREEK, Ariz. — Editor's Note: A previous version of this story misrepresented the status of this case. In July, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office furthered the case back to the Queen Creek Police Department for more investigation and QCPD resubmitted the case. It is now under review.
Neighbors and community members in Queen Creek are outraged with the Maricopa County Attorney's Office's delays to make a charging decision in a child porn case.
Over the last five months, arrest documents show Cody Weaver admitted to watching child porn, attempting to download and upload what he believed was "AI child porn," and has been arrested on over a dozen counts of sexual exploitation of a minor but was never formally charged.
The investigation began back in March when Queen Creek police were alerted by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children that someone at an IP Address in Queen Creek was attempting to upload child abuse material to a Gmail account, according to a 60-page police report obtained by 12News.
On April 26, Queen Creek PD executed a search warrant at Weaver's home and seized over a dozen of his laptops, hard drives, and phones. Weaver agreed to speak with detectives without a lawyer.
In that interview, he admitted to having an addiction to pornography and told the detectives he had viewed child pornography before. He claimed he had previously downloaded "AI pornography" and became afraid when an alert popped up on his laptop that he was viewing child abuse material.
In the police report, detectives say they did not find AI porn; instead, they allegedly found 13 files depicting child pornography. After a forensic review, officials said the children involved ranged in age from under one to teens around 15 years old. All were engaging in sexual acts, police said.
"The public should be made aware of what's going on, even if he has yet to be prosecuted," sexual assault victim advocate, Kayleigh Kozak said. "They found these videos compiled on this man's devices that were in his home. This man to the police, admitted that he has, in fact, watched underage porn.”
Kozak says she's been outspoken on this case after people who live in Weaver's neighborhood expressed concern with the lack of action on this case. She said many of the neighbors saw the search warrant be executed, but have still seen Weaver attend community events with children present.
Weaver was arrested by Queen Creek PD on June 13. They believed they had probable cause to arrest him on 14 counts of possessing and distributing sexual exploitation of a minor materials. He was booked into jail and had a mugshot taken, but his stay behind bars was short.
This is because the Maricopa County Attorney's office sent the case back to the Queen Creek Police Department. A spokesperson tells 12News this was done because they needed more evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, the legal bar to garner a conviction in criminal court.
When we asked what specific evidence they believed they were missing, we were told they could not disclose that information.
Queen Creek PD resubmitted the case to the Maricopa County Attorney's office for charging on July 23, but the case has yet to be charged.
When we asked Queen Creek PD what additional evidence they have now provided to prosecutors, we were told to file a records request and would not state what additional investigation they conducted.
“These cases are not being taken seriously, and it's deeply concerning, especially given the nature of the allegations," Kozak said.
Weaver does not appear to have any prior criminal record. His defense attorney, Jason Lamm, made a statement on his behalf alleging that there was not enough evidence to charge him with a crime.
The full statement:
Police often arrest people based on their unilateral belief that there is probable cause to believe that a crime was committed. The inquiry does not simply end there as prosecutors must believe that they have evidence that is strong enough to warrant a conviction.
While Cody Weaver was arrested on the Queen Creek Police Department’s belief that he committed a crime, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office declined to file charges at that time and the case was dismissed. Mr. Weaver is presumed innocent and stands on that presumption. Criminal cases are decided in a court of law - not in the court of public opinion or on neighborhood social media.
The Maricopa County Attorney's office did not give a timeline on when they will decide to charge the case or not. There is no statute of limitations for sex crimes involving children in Arizona, meaning there is no deadline on when the case must be charged.
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