ORLANDO, Fla. – The former owner of a traveling baseball club for teens is charged with multiple counts of child pornography, according to Orlando police.
Police arrested Timothy Daniel Shea, 45, on Tuesday, June 22, according to a news release.
The investigation into Shea began in May 2020, when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a tip from Twitter that one IP address had generated 3,000 pages of explicit direct messages, 2,000 tweets with explicit images and one upload of an image depicting the sexual performance of a child, the release states.
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Police said they traced the IP address to Shea’s residence in the 3500 block of Fairway Lane in Orlando, which is also the registered address of Shea’s business, Tribe Baseball Club. According to the club’s website, it began in 2020 following the cancellation of the high school baseball season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Shea turned over ownership of the team on Feb. 26, according to Orlando police. That happened after Orlando police executed a search warrant on Shea’s home on Feb. 4, according to an arrest warrant. During that search, a detective explained to Shea the reason for the search and the tip that started the investigation, records show. Following that conversation, Shea declined to speak further and asked to speak with an attorney, police said.
Through a search warrant, detectives found multiple images of child pornography in Shea’s Dropbox account and on his cell phone they discovered 3,400 chats discussing ways to sexually abuse children, according to police.
Investigators said Shea also solicited personal items from people online, such as used underwear, possibly belonging to women and girls, found in hundreds of individually stored baggies.
Shea faces 10 counts of possession of material depicting sexual performance by a child younger than 10 and unlawful use of two-way communication device.
Police say Shea had contact with teens around Central Florida. Anyone who believes their child may be a victim is asked to call the detectives with the special victims unit at 407-246-2970.