LOGAN — A 22-year-old Utah State University student has confessed to using a popular social media app to download child pornography. Elijah Benjamin Maddocks was arrested Feb. 13, following an investigation by the Logan City Police Department.
Court records show, Maddocks appeared Sept. 9 in Logan’s 1st District Court. He accepted a plea deal, pleading guilty to five counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, a first-degree felony; and five counts of enticing a minor, a second-degree felony. As part of the resolution, 17 remaining charges were dismissed.
According to prosecutors, Logan police officers received a cybertip from Snapchat in December 2023. The messaging app claimed a user had uploaded a file that later was determined to be child sexual abuse material.
Police obtained a warrant to search the Snapchat account that was registered to Maddocks. They found multiple images of female children between the ages of 6 and 16-years-old. The girls were nude or partially clothed, and engaged in various sex acts.
Several chats were also located between Maddocks and teenage individuals. The chats were sexual in nature and often about exchanging naked images.
Logan police contacted the Utah State University Police Department, who confirmed there was an Elijah Maddocks attending the school. Officers arrested the suspect as he was exiting his apartment.
During questioning, Maddocks reportedly admitted to viewing and possessing child pornography. He said, he was curious about children and age did not matter to him. He later confessed to sharing “several hundred” files of child sexual abuse material with other people online.
According to court records, Maddocks is reportedly from the Salt Lake area and is currently being held in the Cache County Jail without bail. He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 21, and could face up to life in prison.