Pulitzer award-winning American cartoonist arrested over charges of possessing more than 100 child pornography

"The investigation continued, and a total of 134 videos of CSAM were located and linked to the same account, owned and controlled by 49-year-old Darrin Bell," read a statement issued by the Sheriff's Office.

While conducting a search operation, detective recovered evidence related to the case, as well as computer-generated/AI CSAM. 

"Bell was subsequently arrested and booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail for the possession of CSAM," the statement said.

He is currently in custody being held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to appear in court on January 17.

This case was the first arrest by Sacramento Valley ICAC where possession of computer-generated/AI CSAM was charged against a suspect (the law changed on January 1, 2025, to include AI-generated material as a criminal offence).

The Sheriff's website also identified Bell as a well-known cartoonist who was featured in several prominent publications. 

   As per the Pulitzer Award website, Bell is a recipient of the 2016 Berryman Award for Editorial Cartooning, the 2015 RFK Award for editorial cartooning, and UC Berkeley's 2015 Daily Californian Alumni of the Year Award.

Darrin lives with his wife and two children in California.