Child Porn Trafficker Arrested After Stafford Tip: Police

STAFFORD, VA — A suspected child pornography trafficker in Missouri, identified in large part by work from the Stafford County Sheriff's office, was arrested last week in Pacific, Mo.

Thomas Joseph Mueller, of Cedar Ridge Drive in Pacific, Mo., is facing 70 felony arrest warrants for possession of child pornography when he's extradited to Stafford.

A Stafford County police detective tasked with patrolling known Internet sites used to trade pornographic pictures and videos happened upon a suspect posting pictures of pre-pubescent girls and boys performing sexual acts with adults.

Some of the children were described as being as young as 5 years old.

Stafford police traced the photos to Mueller, contacted local police in Pacific, Mo., who in turn contacted the Missouri Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

When St. Louis County Police raided Mueller's home, they found several hundred child pornography pictures on his computer, and asked Stafford police to file charges.

Photo: St. Louis County Police