by Andy Banker
COLLINSVILLE, IN (KTVI) – There were new developments Tuesday in what authorities said was a frightening, twisted case of child pornography.
Authorities said the suspect was known for dressing as an evil clown in a hard core rock band.
Information surfaced Tuesday there could be more than one alleged victim.
It all started with a tip to Collinsville police. Now, the suspect, Martin “Vlad” Evanick, faces a federal charge of producing child pornography.
Authorities said he targeted underage girls.
They wanted everyone to see Evanick’s photos, with and without the evil clown getup.
“If any of your viewers recognize this individual through his Facebook or his Myspace photographs or through any photographs that have already been publicly distributed, they should contact the local authorities, particularly if they have a young, minor, female,” said US Attorney Stephen Wiggington.
Evanick lived in the 100 block of March in Collinsville before his arrest. He’s accused of taking pornographic photos of himself engaged in a sex act with an underage girl.
Evanick is the drummer for a band called, “Core of Your Nightmares”. The band has played at the Lemp Brewery in the past.
New information about the potential of multiple victims just surfaced during a detention hearing on the initial charge.
“We also presented in open court the fact that we know he was traveling throughout the Metro East area and at least on a couple of occasions he was photographing young female workers at fast food restaurants. Those workers appeared to be minors. He was focusing on certain areas of their bodies,” Wiggington said, specifically the breast and crotch regions.
Authorities said fellow band members were not involved. Evanick acted alone.
Wiggington said if you know of a young female acquainted with Evanick or his music, it was a cause for concern; check their cell phones if possible, especially the text messages.
“[Predators] are not going to be calling your home phone and your land line. They’re not going to be calling and leaving voice mail on your teenager’s cell phone. They’re not going to be emailing your home computer. They want to do so in the most secretive way they believe they can, that’s through a text message to the teen. Most of the experts in the field will tell you that these are not one victim cases. In this case, as we indicated in open court in his detention hearing, we’ve identified at least one other victim,” Wiggington explained.
A woman who said she knew Evanick well but didn’t want to be identified said authorities were wrong.
Still, Evanick was locked up with no bond.
State charges of child sexual abuse are also possible, but federal charges carry stiffer penalties: 15-30 years in prison if convicted on the initial count alone. So, the federal case will be prosecuted first.
Evanick’s band posted the following message on their Facebook page:
“As most of you may already know, our drummer, Vlad, has been arrested on child pornography charges; we had no involvement or knowledge about these act (s), and we in no way condone in such actions, what happened to him is unfortunate, but he brought it on himself.”
