Court documents say graphic child porn found on Sauk County board member’s computer
SAUK COUNTY, Wis. — A warrant has been issued for the arrest of longtime Sauk County Board Supervisor, Bill Wenzel, after investigators found child pornography on his laptop.
The Baraboo News Republic first reported Wenzel was charged with five felony counts Thursday by the Wisconsin attorney general’s office.
“Such behavior is totally unacceptable, deplorable and can never be condoned,” Sauk County Board Chair Peter Vedro said.
Vedro has worked alongside Wenzel for the past five years. When we asked if these charges surprised him, Vedro said, “Absolutely. I think they surprise everyone.”
The details of the videos that investigators found are disturbing. One video is described as a girl performing a sex act on a dog. Another video describes a man instructing a dog to perform sex acts on a girl.
Bill Wenzel has served on the Sauk County Board for more than 20 years. Investigators conducted a search warrant of his home and found several videos of child porn. A warrant is out for his arrest. The board chair says Wenzel has a right to serve as a supervisor until convicted. pic.twitter.com/8CUCmV4KPd
— Jamie Perez (@JamiePerezTV) March 1, 2019
The criminal complaint quotes Sauk Prairie police Officer Tom Oellerich, using the term “prepubescent” to describe the girls, who he says “do not exhibit any, or only very limited, physical-sexual development.”
The complaint also states that Oellerich was informed by Detective Chief Inspector Special Agent Jeffrey Lanzer after Lenzer conducted an online investigation peer-to-peer file sharing networks using BitTorrent software. BitTorrent allows people to connect with others to share digital files. Lenzer was able to connect Wenzel’s IP address to a downloaded file that showed child pornography.
Lenzer used a geo-location tool to track the IP address to Wenzel’s home in Prairie du Sac.
The complaint also states that on Feb. 21, Oellerich obtained a search warrant to “seize and analyze digital devices” at Wenzel’s home. On Feb. 22, SPPD and DCI law enforcement officers and agents executed the search warrant. Based on their search, they believe Wenzel is the sole occupant of the home.
The complaint states that 10 files were bookmarked for Oellerich’s review, which they identified as child pornography.
Sauk Prairie Police Chief Jerry Strunz reached Wenzel by phone and Wenzel stated he was in New Orleans for two weeks, on vacation. Oellerich also contacted Wenzel, who confirmed he was the owner of the laptop, according to the criminal complaint.
Wenzel’s attorney, Chris Van Wagner, of Madison, told us over the phone: “I have contacted the prosecutor. We are working to arrange a voluntary appearance at the first opportunity in the next few days. It’s complicated by the fact that we have to wait to be assigned to a judge that can hear it.”
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