Craig A. Barnes: Okeechobee County man faces child porn, sexual battery charges

OKEECHOBEE COUNTY, Fla. - A 51-year-old Okeechobee man is behind bars and facing several charges, including sexual battery on a child.

The alleged victim told Okeechobee County Sheriff's detectives that  Craig A. Barnes possessed child pornography.

The sheriff's office requested a warrant and searched his home Wednesday.

The sheriff's office said it found "numerous items of child pornography."

Investigators charged him with sexual battery on a child, computer child pornography and possession or promotion of images of child pornography.

"This case is extremely disturbing. Right now, in the eyes of the law, he is innocent. If these charges are proven, then this is what prisons are built for," Okeechobee County Sheriff Paul C. May said in a written release.

Barnes has not yet made a first appearance. He is currently being held in the Okeechobee County Jail.