North Liberty man faces 40 counts of child sexual abuse

Incidents were recorded on video, sheriff says

Jan. 12, 2022 4:54 pm, Updated: Jan. 12, 2022 6:44 pm

Thomas Jesse

IOWA CITY — A North Liberty man faces 40 counts of child sexual abuse recorded on video, according to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office.

Thomas Dean Jesse, 37, was charged Tuesday with 40 counts of second-degree sexual abuse, class B felonies, and three counts of indecent exposure, aggravated misdemeanors, after the sheriff’s office was tipped to the videos stored on his laptop, according to criminal complaints.

Information provided to the sheriff’s office on Oct. 13 helped them uncover at least 40 videos depicting Jesse engaged in sex acts with a 6-year-old.

The videos depict dozens of separate acts between March 2020 and September 2021. They were recorded in various rooms of a home, a car and outdoors.

Jesse is being held in the Henry County Jail in Mount Pleasant on a $1 million cash or surety bond.

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