Three brothers in their 70s and 80s have been arrested in Seattle and charged with possession of images depicting child sex abuse, according to Seattle police, who are still investigating the heinous case.
Key Developments:
- 82-year-old Charles Emery, 80-year-old Thomas Emery and 79-year-old Edwin Emery were charged Monday with two counts of possession of depictions of minors engaged in sexual conduct.
- Police say a family member was cleaning the men's Green Lake home and discovered what she believed to be materials depicting the sexual abuse of a child.
- Charging papers say authorities including members of the FBI's internet Crimes Against Children Task Force searched the home, finding evidence prosecutors say that each of the men spent the majority of their lives sexually abusing children and exploiting children depicted in child pornography.
- Detectives say it was Charles' "manifestos" about Satanic rituals, kidnapping, raping and killing girls that led them to dig under sheds, searching for evidence of potential murder.
What the investigation first found
On Aug. 19, Seattle child sex crime detectives say they acted on a tip from a relative who was cleaning out the brothers’ garage.
The relative called 911. At the home, detectives collected a staggering amount of child porn.
They also found evidence of the sexual exploitation of young girls, as well as children's worn clothing and underwear, children’s shoes, toys and movies.
Homeland Security's Internet Child Exploitation team assisted in the search, which involved digging for potential buried evidence under locked sheds and garages.
About the brothers
Neighbors in the quiet Green Lake neighborhood along Northeast 59th St. Street say they always wondered about the dilapidated house and the three guarded, mysterious Emery brothers who lived there since 1962.
"I've never seen a girlfriend, a wife, a woman of any type visit that house," said Don Smith, who lives next door.
Seattle police say the brothers, ranging in age from 78 to 82, began molesting their own sister and eventually molested other young relatives for decades.
None of the men ever married and none had children of their own or many relationships outside their family, authorities said.
Police arrested Charles Lee Emery, 82, in a Queen Anne nursing home. Thomas Edwin Emery, 80 and Edwin Harold Emery, 78, were arrested at their home.
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