San Benito County probation worker charged with possessing sexually explicit images of a minor he communicated with on TikTok

A Gilroy resident and San Benito County probation employee has been charged with possessing sexually explicit images of a minor he was communicating with on social media, authorities said.

The Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office said in a press release on Tuesday that 53-year-old Damon Jon Luecke had been communicating with a 13-year-old boy on TikTok and had ultimately met with him in person. The boy's mother contacted police after discovering the communications, the DA's Office said.

According to the office, during the exchanges on TikTok, the victim specifically said that he was 13 years old, and despite knowing that, Luecke allegedly continued to engage in sexually explicit conversations, discussing photographs and meeting in person.

"There are child predators lurking online," District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a prepared statement. "The fact that this defendant was working in law enforcement - with children at one point - is deeply disturbing."  

Police obtained search warrants were obtained for the victim's cellular phone and online accounts. Evidence recovered from the phone and online accounts included sexually explicit images of the victim.

Luecke works as an IT staff analyst at the San Benito County Probation Department. Before that, he worked about 16 years for the San Mateo County Probation Department, including as a juvenile corrections officer/counselor at the Boys Ranch.

Luecke was arrested on August 7 at his home on charges of contacting a minor and arranging to meet with intent to commit lewd or lascivious acts, possessing child sexual abuse material, and annoying or molesting a child under 18 years of age. He was scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday at the South County Courthouse in Morgan Hill. 

A conviction on the charges would result in multiple years in state prison and a requirement to register as a sex offender.

The DA's Office asked anyone with relevant information about this case to contact the Gilroy Police Department at 408-846-0368.