Updated on: January 16, 2025 / 9:52 AM PST / CBS Sacramento
SACRAMENTO – A man who authorities say is a famed cartoonist was arrested on child pornography-related charges in Sacramento County on Wednesday.
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said the investigation stemmed from a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children claiming 18 files of child pornography were uploaded online.
The tip included that 134 videos were located and linked to the same account, which deputies said an investigation determined was owned and controlled by 49-year-old Darrin Bell.
Deputies served a search warrant at Bell’s home Wednesday, saying they found evidence related to the case, as well as computer-generated child pornography.
Bell, who deputies said is a well-known cartoonist who was featured in several prominent publications, was arrested and booked into jail. He is being held on a $1 million bail.
According to Bell’s LinkedIn account, he is a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist and the creator of the syndicated comic strip “Candorville.”
His website says he began professionally cartooning in 1995 for the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland Tribune and other newspapers.
Deputies said this was the first arrest by the Sacramento Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Detectives where possession of computer-generated child pornography charges were filed against a suspect thanks to a new law that went into effect at the beginning of the year.
Bell is scheduled for arraignment Friday afternoon.
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