ICE HSI Portland arrests ex-camp instructor for child exploitation material
PORTLAND — A Portland man was arrested following a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigation that revealed he purchased and downloaded child pornography from the dark web between Sept.-Oct. 2020. HSI Portland executed a search warrant at Alexander Wiese’s residence in Portland and arrested the former camp instructor Wednesday for receiving child pornography and accessing it with intent to view child pornography. Wiese made his initial appearance in Federal Court in Portland, Thursday.
“There is no safe place on the dark web for criminals to hide from Homeland Security Investigations. HSI brings significant digital forensics expertise, broad legal authorities, and a worldwide network of investigators and professional staff to bear in combatting the global production and distribution of child pornography,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in the Pacific Northwest. “Wiese has held several positions of trust where he was in direct contact with children. HSI Portland is attempting to identify anyone that may have been victimized by Wiese.”
Wiese previously worked as a day camp instructor and front desk representative at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in 2019, where he had contact with children in the 4th-8th grade age range.
From Oct. 2017-April 2018 Wiese was employed as an Outdoor Science Instructor for 5th-6th graders by Emerald Cove Outdoor Science Institute, in Running Springs, California. Wiese lived onsite in cabins as the sole instructor, with children who participated in overnight programs. Wiese also claims to have been a music educator for 6th-8th grade students in the Da Vinci Arts Middle School in Portland, Oregon, Sept. 2012-May 2015.
Anyone with information about Wiese should call ICE’s toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2423 or by completing an online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196.
HSI takes a victim-centered approach to child exploitation investigations by working to identify, rescue and stabilize victims. HSI works in partnership with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), ICAC partners, and other federal, state, and local agencies to help solve cases and rescue sexually exploited children. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to NCMEC’s toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
In 2019, HSI made nearly 4,000 child exploitation arrests nationally, resulting in more than 1,750 convictions.
HSI is a directorate of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel, and finance move. HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 employees consists of more than 7,100 Special Agents assigned to 220 cities throughout the United States, and 80 overseas locations in 53 countries. HSI’s international presence represents DHS’s largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.
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