Bail set at $20,000 for Centralia man accused of possessing child porn
May 10—Bail is set at $20,000 for a Centralia man accused of storing child pornography on his phone.
Cody G. Lance, 35, was arrested on Tuesday, May 7, after the Lewis County Sheriff's office investigated a tip it received from the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in March, according to court documents.
He was charged Wednesday with five counts of first-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and one count of second-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
According to the tip, five images of suspected child porn were uploaded to Lance's phone on Dec. 1, 2023. Investigators reportedly found a total of 13 images stored on the phone.
The photos depicted children between the ages of 6 and 11.
When contacted by investigators, Lance allegedly "admitted to using different platforms to communicate with people regarding child pornography and sharing what he received with others online," according to court documents. He allegedly "explained that the conversations and images would disgust him, and he would get off the sites, but then would get pulled back in," according to court documents.
Lance reportedly "denied victimizing" the two young children who live at his home.
In addition to setting bail on Wednesday, Lewis County Superior Court Judge James Lawler ruled to allow Lance to have supervised contact with his children. His conditions of release prohibit him from having any contact with other children.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, May 16.
