MONROE — Acting on tips from a national center working to protect children, local authorities have charged a 24-year-old Monticello man on three counts of possession of child pornography.

The arrest came just after 5:45 a.m. on Thursday, June 29, when the Green County Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau — assisted by the Green County Sheriff’s Office SRT Team, the Village of Monticello Police Department, and the Wisconsin Department of Justice — executed a residential search warrant in the 300 block of South Garfield in the Village of Monticello.

The defendant is Corey L. Wurtzbacher.

“As a result of several months of investigation which began with the receipt of a National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) Cybertip in October 2022 referred from the Wisconsin Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, a search warrant was issued …,” police said in a statement. “Following the search warrant, Wurtzbacher was arrested without incident and taken to Green County Jail, pending an initial court appearance.”

He faces three counts of Possession of Child Pornography and one count of Sexual Exploitation of a Child, authorities said.

While technology has made it easier for suspected criminals to access child pornography, it has also resulted in more of them being caught nationwide, District Attorney Craig Nolen said on Friday. A criminal complaint detailing the Wurtzbacher arrest was not yet available.

The case remains under investigation.