UHP: Crash south of New Harmony leads to discovery of $30K, images of sexually abused children

Stock image of Utah Highway Patrol vehicles, Hurricane, Utah, Oct. 11, 2019 | File photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — What started with a single-vehicle crash ended in the arrest of two men on Tuesday after troopers found a box of money and a file containing thousands of images depicting children being sexually abused that police say one of the men was selling for profit.

In this 2020 file photo for illustrative purposes only Utah Highway Patrol troopers respond to scene near Parowan, Utah, June 3, 2020 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Early Tuesday morning, two Southern California men, Luis David Nivelo, 20, who was driving the vehicle, and passenger Victor Hernandez, 19, were southbound on Interstate 15 just south of New Harmony when Nivelo lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a wall, according to charging documents filed with the court.

After responding to the crash, Utah Highway Patrol troopers found the damaged vehicle partially blocking the roadway facing the wrong direction, and Nivelo and Hernandez were found sitting in the vehicle of a witness who pulled over to help.

A trooper said his suspicion was raised while speaking to Nivelo, who said “the car suddenly began sliding and he lost control and crashed.” The trooper said he had not observed any ice or snow on the way to the crash and had been driving between 100-120 mph. Suspicious of further criminal activity, the trooper then requested backup.

While Nivelo said there was nothing illegal inside the car, Hernandez said he did smoke marijuana, the report states, adding that both men denied the possession of any large amounts of U.S. currency.

A police K-9, who was deployed to perform a free-air sniff around the vehicle, indicated the possible presence of illegal narcotics. Following this, a trooper asked to search a black backpack Hernandez had been carrying around, which Hernandez reportedly said contained only clothing.

When the backpack was searched, however, authorities say they found only a large box, which is when the suspect said “the backpack wasn’t his and he did not know who the box belonged to,” according to the report.

Stock image | St. George News

Inside the box, troopers found three stacks of cash bound by rubber bands that totaled some $30,000. Also recovered was a box of eight magic mushroom chocolate bars.

Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Cameron Roden told St. George News it was the discovery of the large amount of cash that resulted in a money laundering charge, as it is suspected that the money was made through criminal activity.

In the backseat of the car, troopers reportedly found a poster advertising an underground, internet-based dispensary with a Telegram QR code for purchasing items. Telegram is a common social media method used to facilitate drug sales, the report states.

At that point, both men were handcuffed and transported to a UHP office to be interviewed by agents with the State Bureau of Investigations.

While Nivelo denied any involvement in the found cash and narcotics and also initially denied having the Telegram application on his cell phone, authorities say he later admitted to downloading the app, which is when authorities obtained a warrant to search his phone for any evidence related to the sale of narcotics.

What agents found when they opened the application, however, were photographs and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, including pre-pubescent, adolescent and teenage children.

One particular file that was recovered contained more than “13 gigabytes of photos and videos,” the agent noted.

A second search warrant was issued to seize the images and videos as evidence, which is when agents say they found evidence of Nivelo’s involvement in the sale and distribution of the images, including messages confirming payment and so on.

When confronted with the evidence, Nivelo reportedly admitted to possessing the illicit images and videos and said he “knew the possession and viewing of such material was wrong.”

Depending on the quality, resolution and other factors, it is estimated that a 13-gigabyte drive can hold more than 7,700 still photos, or roughly 2,990 two-minute videos, which equals roughly 91 hours of video in total.

Following the interview, both men were transported to the Washington County Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked into jail.

Both men each face one second-degree felony count of money laundering, along with three misdemeanor charges of possession of marijuana and paraphernalia, as well as possession of a controlled substance.

Nivelo faces an additional charge of first-degree felony sexual exploitation of a minor for the thousands of images depicting the sexual abuse of children found on his phone. Roden said Nivelo faces this charge due to the size of the files that were recovered during the search, in addition to the evidence that suggested Nivelo was selling the images and videos.

Agents also requested that Nivelo be held without bail, citing the suspect is currently out on bail on two felony firearm cases out of California and has no ties to Utah, in addition to the amount of child sexual abuse videos he reportedly possessed.

As such, the suspect not only poses a risk to the general public but also to “children specifically,” the agent noted.

The request was approved and Nivelo remains in custody on a no-bail hold, while Hernandez is being held on $10,000 bail. The report was sent to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for review.

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

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