Tip to FOX 2 leads to arrest of man in widely shared child porn video

DETROIT (WJBK) - A Detroit man is locked up in Alabama, accused of sexually assaulting young children. He is in custody now after turning himself in, after a video of one of the incidents started spreading on Facebook. 

Now we're learning more about allegations of even more abuse -- and how he was caught.

"This is probably one of the more troubling cases that I’ve been made aware of," says Detroit Police Chief James Craig.

Craig spoke of 44-year-old Germain Moore accused of sexually assaulting three little girls - all siblings. In one of them, one of the girls is allegedly pictured performing a sex act on him in a video that went viral on Facebook across the country and beyond, with people sharing the video asking police departments and news stations to investigate.

One viewer wrote, "The post is circulating of a young girl getting molested - please investigate - this needs to stop." But it wasn't clear where the video came from - or who was in it. 

Then Saturday, FOX 2 Assignment Editor Lisa Gass made contact with a Detroit woman claiming the child in the video was her daughter.

The woman told FOX 2 she had reported it to Detroit Police but nothing happened, and she needed our help.

In a text she wrote, "I do have the copy of the report, it’s just not one of my daughters - it's all three of them. Please help me."

"Sex Crimes wasn't made aware of it immediately and that was a problem for me," Craig says. "I can tell you I'm angry right now because there was a slight delay."

But FOX 2 contacted Detroit Police and they took action.

"I appreciate the fact that FOX notified us. It was through your notification that the ball really started to roll and we got some things done very quickly," he says.

Sex Crimes began investigating immediately, making contact with police in Alabama where the suspect lives. Police say Moore is originally from Detroit and is a close acquaintance of the children, who are safe and with their mother. Moore turned himself in early Tuesday morning in Alabama.

Woman says she was also victim of Detroit man linked to child porn vid

"An immediate response to identify the suspect which was done," Craig said. "There was great coordination - not only with our sex crimes unit but also the authorities in Alabama."

Moore is charged with sexually assaulting the children and distributing video of the assault. Authorities there say Moore's wife was taken into custody for interfering in the investigation.

Another man, Jerrell Washington, was arrested for allegedly distributing the child pornography. Investigators now say there could be more charges.

"We believe based on what we know about this case that there may be other victims," Craig said. "It's a very hard one to deal with - the good news is the suspect is in custody."

Moore faces multiple charges in Alabama as well as in Michigan. He is expected to be extradited to Michigan soon.

If you have any information about this case or become aware of any other child being abused, contact the Detroit Police Sex Crimes Unit at (313) 596-1950.