SHADYSIDE — A Belmont County grand jury will review the evidence against Gregory Allen Holcomb in June.

Holcomb was arrested Friday on charges involving “child exploitation” and rape.

The sheriff’s Criminal Investigative Unit, in conjunction with Homeland Security Investigations, served a search warrant at Holcomb’s residence on Rolling Hills Lane. They were acting on a cyber tip received by HSI.

As a result of the search, Holcomb was arrested and charged with rape, pandering obscenity involving a minor and pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor.

Belmont County Prosecutor Kevin Flanagan said the grand jury will meet on the first Wednesday of the month, June 7, with arraignments held June 15.

“It is going to be set for the June grand jury right now,” he said. “It was bound over from the Eastern Division County Court.”

Flanagan described the investigation.

“Homeland Security was advised through an anonymous tip and began their investigation relative to a social media website that the defendant was known to utilize. From that investigation, Homeland Security notified the Belmont County Sheriff’s Department,” he said. “There was also involvement from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. In the course of the intelligence investigation, it was determined that the defendant, Mr. Holcomb, was suspected of engaging in viewing and/or sharing child pornography. From further investigation, an additional charge of child sex abuse (rape) was filed.”

In the interest of protecting the alleged victim’s identity, Flanagan did not release information about the victim’s age or where the alleged rape occurred.

“It did happen in Belmont County,” he said. “The investigation began in April of 2023. … It would have occurred in the months preceding the investigation.”

He said interagency communications and joint investigations are common.

“Normally what happens is we will get a tip that can come through a number of different channels. For instance an internet provider can provide information, a website can provide information. A lot of times this starts off with Internet Crimes Against Children. … From there, it will normally go to a federal agency, who will then notify a state agency … who then notifies local law enforcement and they will say: ‘There is somebody in your jurisdiction that appears to have access to child pornography or shared child pornography.’ From there, our local law enforcement gets involved. … Normally it’s intercepted on a national scale.”

Holcomb is being held in the Belmont County Jail with a $500,000 bond. Further investigation is pending.