Judge- Accusation of sex with niece will keep Joplin man behind bars

A Joplin man will remain behind bars as he awaits trial on federal child pornography charges.

A judge ruled today in favor of the prosecution motion to keep Frank Ness behind bars:

Regarding potential danger to the community, the court notes the nature of the instant offense, defendant's mental history and the charge involves the use of a computer to facilitate the offense. In addition, a task force officer testified that a niece of the defendant reported to him that she was the victim of sexual abuse by the defendant while she was a minor chlid. There is clear and convincing evidence that the defendant is a danger to the community.

The charges against Ness were explained in a news release issued by the Department of Justice:

Frank Edwin Ness, 44, of Joplin, was charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo. Today’s indictment replaces a federal criminal complaint that was filed against Ness on July 17, 2014.

Today’s indictment alleges that Ness received and distributed child pornography over the Internet between Jan. 1, 2004, and July 16, 2014.

According to an affidavit filed in support of the original criminal complaint, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Ness’s residence on July 16, 2014, and seized his desktop computer. Investigators found at least 124 videos containing child pornography when they previewed the computer, the affidavit says.

The indictment also contains a forfeiture allegation, which would require Ness to forfeit to the government any property used to commit the alleged offense, including a desktop computer.