Bail set at $3 million for Cary man charged with 16 counts of child pornography

A Cary man accused of possessing and distributing child pornography made his first court appearance Friday.

Paul Sullivan, 51, faces five counts of first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and 11 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, according to arrest records. He spent about five minutes standing before District Court Judge Ned Mangum to hear the charges against him and then to say he was hiring his own attorney.

Sullivan, wearing a yellow jail jumpsuit, said nothing else before deputies led him out of the courtroom.

Sullivan was arrested Thursday by Cary police as part of a nationwide child sexual exploitation sweep that arrested 82 people in eight Southeastern states.

The investigation into Sullivan started with a tip from the Internet Crimes Against Children task force, Capt. John Szymeczek said in an email. They received information that a pornographic image of a girl who looked like she was 11 to 13 years old had been uploaded from an IP address in Cary, he said.

After obtaining a search warrant, Cary police searched Sullivan’s home Thursday.

Officers discovered additional images on digital media storage that led them to arrest Sullivan, Szymeczek said.

Some of the juvenile victims have been identified, while others are unknown, he said.

In one picture police found, a 7-year-old, 5-year-old, and 1-year-old were engaging in sexual activity, investigators told ABC11, the News & Observer’s media partner.

A charge for first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor dates back to 2016, arrest records say.

Under North Carolina law, first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor includes using, inducing, coercing or encouraging a minor to engage in or assist others in engaging in sexual activity. It also includes recording, photographing, filming or duplicating material that contains visual representations of a minor engaged in sexual activity. The second-degree offense covers recording, photographing, filming or duplicating material that contains visual representations of a minor engaged in sexual activity, along with distribution or exhibition of the material.

Sullivan was being held in the Wake County jail under a $3 million secured bail, arrest records say.

His next court date is May 23

This story was originally published May 3, 2019 at 11:37 AM.