By Jeremy Ratliff
MMC Staff
MERRILL – A 40-year-old man remains in the custody of the Lincoln County Jail on $250,000 cash bond, facing charges of possession of child pornography and sexual exploitation of a child.
According to a criminal complaint filed with the Lincoln County District Attorney’s Office, Jason D. Ridolfi was named as a suspect in an investigation that began on Thursday, Nov. 19, when a Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office investigator was contacted by a Special Agent with the Wisconsin Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), referencing cyber tip line reports received from the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
Related to the reports were multiple explicit photographs of victims under the age of 18, which Ridolfi was implicated in being involved with the production of. During an interview with investigators, Ridolfi reportedly admitted to taking the photos, and advised the victims were children of friends from Kenosha. As a result of a search warrant executed at Ridolfi’s residence, a cell phone and tablet were located, containing additional pornographic images.
Ridolfi appeared in Lincoln County Circuit Court on Friday, Nov. 20, facing two felony counts of possession of child pornography and a felony count of child sexual exploitation. He was ordered held on $250,000 cash bond with conditions of having no contact with the victim in the case, having no contact with any parks, having no contact with minors, not leaving the state of Wisconsin, not possessing any electronic devices that can connect with the internet and not possessing cameras. Ridolfi was also ordered to surrender any passports and not to obtain a new passport.
Ridolfi is due back in court on Thursday, Jan. 7, for a status conference.