An Oregon man who reportedly photographed JonBenét Ramsey six months before her unsolved 1996 slaying was recently indicted on multiple child sex abuse charges.
The Register-Guard reported that Randall DeWitt Simons, 66, was arrested July 2 following a yearlong child pornography investigation. Police were alerted to Simons’ alleged actions in June 2018, following reports that someone was using a restaurant’s WiFi to download explicit images.
Citing a search warrant affidavit, the news outlet reported that police obtained the computer’s identification address that was downloading the images while on the restaurant’s WiFi. From there, they were reportedly able to track the computer identification to someone who lived near the restaurant.
The man reportedly told police that he had given away his old computers but they still had identifying information on them. The Register-Guard reported that the man provided the name of someone who he had given a computer to, presumably Simons, who lived nearby.
Oakridge and Springfield police reportedly zeroed in on Simons in June. Police reportedly used a software program and were able to witness Simons logging into the restaurant’s WiFi—resulting in them tracing the signal to his home.
An October 1998 Associated Press article on Simons’ arrest for indecent exposure described him as Ramsey’s former photographer. The article also noted that months earlier, he faced controversy for selling glamour photos of the slain 6-year-old to a photo agency for $7,500.
The Register-Guard noted that the book “Perfect Murder, Perfect Town” by Lawrence Shiller alleged that at the time of his 1998 arrest, he randomly told an officer, “I didn’t kill JonBenét.”
A June 27 search of Simons’ home reportedly produced four laptops, three camcorders, two bags of optical discs, and six cameras.
Simons has pleaded not guilty to 15 counts of encouraging child sex abuse. He’s scheduled to appear in court on August 7.
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[Featured image: JonBenét Ramsey/Handout; Randall DeWitt Simons/Lane County Jail ]
