BOUNTIFUL, Utah — Police arrested two Bountiful men Tuesday in connection with a child pornography investigation
Michael Swen Bergdorf, 40, and Benjamin Lothar Bergdorf, 37, are each facing eight second-degree felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.
According to court documents, investigators with the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force served a search warrant at the Bergdorfs' home, at 1869 Stone Hollow Dr., on Tuesday.
While executing the search warrant, investigators discovered an external hard drive and a thumb drive that were both used to store graphic images of child pornography, the documents said.
According to the statements of probable cause for Michael and Benjamin Bergdorf, Michael waived his Miranda right to remain silent and admitted to searching the dark web for child sexual abuse material.
Investigators also found several firearms, including a short-barrel AK-47, over $20,000 in cash, gas masks and materials that could be used for making explosive devices, the probable cause statements said.
According to the documents, Benjamin Bergdorf possessed an encyclopedia to create bomb-making material and several items to create explosives. Police said the FBI will handle a separate investigation regarding those items.
"Statements were made by one of the suspects that there is a history of hacking into government and private systems to obtain information. There is also an indication illegal drugs are being purchased or transported to the residence, or by at least one suspect," the documents said. "Michael acted as the accounted for the family; there were transfers of money between $10,000-$100,000 with no clear explanation for the purpose."
Police said the Bergdorf family has a high net worth and both suspects have green cards for Germany, so the investigators requested that the two men be held without bail.
