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Undercover sting: 2 Muskegon men arrested for online child exploitation

Posted at 5:48 PM, May 11, 2019
and last updated 2019-05-11 18:54:01-04

MUSKEGON, Mich.  — The Michigan State Police say undercover investigations have resulted in the arrests of a 34-year-old man and a 57-year-old man – both from Muskegon.

A news release from the MSP Computer Crimes Unit (CCU), Internet Crimes against Children (ICAC) Task Force did not indicate that the cases were related.

The CCU/ICAC Task force says its Grand Rapids office executed a search warrant at Mark Allen Whitlow’s home.

MSP photo: Mark Allen Whitlow 5-11-2019.

“Evidence was seized, and he was arrested and lodged at the Muskegon County Jail. The Muskegon County Prosecutor’s Office charged Whitlow and on May 10, he was arraigned on with three counts of child sexually abusive material (distributing), and one count of using a computer to commit a crime.”

An undercover probe of Andrew Paul Cooke’s online activity resulted in his arrest, as well. Police say Cooke is 34 and they used a search warrant to search his home and place of employment. “The Muskegon County Prosecutor’s Office charged Cooke, and after being arrested, he was arraigned on May 6 for child sexually abusive material (distributing), child sexually abusive material (possession), using a computer to commit a crime, and criminal sexual conduct (2nd Degree).”

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children offers a list of resources to help parents keep children safe online. The MSP CCU says it encourages parents to speak to their kids about how to safely use the Internet.

MSP photo: Andrew Paul Cooke. 5-11-2019.

If you have information about a possible case of child-sexual exploitation, police ask you to report it to the CyberTiplline.