Douglas Johnston, 70, faces charges of possession of child sex abuse material and possession of child pornography.
INDIANAPOLIS — On April 15, 2026, Google made a National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) tip that flagged 75 files of child sex abuse material by a Google subscriber.
According to court documents, an IMPD detective was assigned the tip and was provided information on the alleged subscriber named Douglas Johnston, 70, of Indianapolis.
Court documents say the files included photos, videos and collages of nude prepubescent children, appearing to be below the age of 12. In many of the files, the child is also with an adult.
According to court documents, the files were uploaded from Johnston’s Gmail account between April 14-15.
Upon further investigation, IMPD found that Johnston is on the Sex Offender Registry, with prior convictions for child molesting in Marion County in 1997 and 2005.
IMPD obtained a search warrant of Johnston’s home on May 27, which led to them taking his digital devices. On June 2, officers interviews and later arrested Johnston.
According to court documents, Johnston provided his email and said the email address was recently suspended by Google for what he described as his “attraction for girls — little girls.” Court documents also say Johnston acknowledged having specific, continuing attraction to 4- and 5-year-old girls.
The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office charged Johnston with two counts of possession of child sex abuse material and three counts of possession of child pornography.
Johnston’s initial hearing took place Wednesday, June 3.
