Bryant Moreland, the YouTuber known as EDP445, faces four felony child sex crime charges in California after his arrest Wednesday, Nov. 4.
The Kern County District Attorney's Office filed the charges Nov. 2 and announced the arrest in a press release the same day Moreland was taken into custody. Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer said the criminal complaint followed an extensive investigation into statements Moreland made in a documentary.
All four counts are felonies. They are: attempted lewd acts upon a child, meeting a minor for lewd purposes, contacting a minor with intent to commit a sexual offense and distributing or showing pornography to a minor.
Sources differ on where the arrest took place and which agency assisted. The DA's press release states Moreland was "located in Las Vegas, arrested, and taken into custody" with help from the Las Vegas Police Department. 8 News Now reported Moreland was arrested in Henderson with assistance from the Henderson Police Department, citing the DA's release. NDTV also placed the arrest in Henderson.
The charges stem from an alleged incident involving a child under 14 on April 17, 2021, in Bakersfield, California. Moreland allegedly attempted to meet a 13-year-old girl at the Pineridge Apartment Complex in east Bakersfield, according to KGET.
The DA's office said it first reviewed the case in 2021 and 2022 but faced "significant challenges in pursuing prosecution, particularly due to the lack of cooperation from the reporting parties."
Documentary prompted new investigation
A documentary titled "The Sick Mind of EDP445," directed by Mike Clum, was released in August. It examined the 2021 incident, which originated as one of two vigilante online sting operations against Moreland, according to 8 News Now.
In the documentary, Moreland sat for an interview with Chris Hansen, host of "To Catch a Predator." 8 News Now reported that Moreland told Hansen: "I showed up that day trying to meet up with an underage girl."
After those statements surfaced, the Kern County DA's Office and the Kern County Sheriff's Office reopened the investigation. Prosecutors determined the new evidence met the threshold for filing criminal charges, according to the DA's press release.
Moreland, 35, had built a following with online rant videos, mostly about the Philadelphia Eagles. He had five million YouTube subscribers at the height of his career, the New York Post reported. His account was shut down after the 2021 sting, but he was never charged at that time.
Moreland is presumed innocent. He had not publicly commented on the charges as of Nov. 5, according to NDTV. An arraignment hearing will be scheduled after his extradition to Kern County, the DA's office said.
