York County Men Arrested on Child Sexual Abuse Material* Charges

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced the arrest of Jacob Hunter Harris, 25, of York, S.C., and Scott Robert Pless, 55, of Rock Hill, S.C., on six total charges connected to the sexual exploitation of minors. Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators with the York County Sheriff's Office made the arrests in these unrelated cases. Investigators with the South Carolina Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services, also a member of the state's ICAC Task Force, assisted with these investigations.

Investigators state Harris and Pless both possessed files of child sexual abuse material.

Harris was arrested on August 15, 2023. He is charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, third degree (§16-15-410), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count.

Pless was arrested on August 15, 2023. He is charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, third degree (§16-15-410), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count.

Harris was previously convicted on related charges in 2020.

Pless was previously convicted on related charges in 2022.

Both of these cases will be prosecuted by the Attorney General's Office.

Attorney General Wilson stressed all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.

* Child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, is a more accurate reflection of the material involved in these heinous and abusive crimes. "Pornography" can imply the child was a consenting participant.  Globally, the term child pornography is being replaced by CSAM for this reason.