An examination of all evidence seized last week will determine whether further possession of child sexual abuse material will be filed against a car dealership sales manager, the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office detective investigating the case confirmed today.

Detective Christopher Watkins filed a total of nine search warrants in the case of Jeffrey Hoots, who as of this report remained in the Halifax County Detention Center on a charge of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor as well as drug charges that include a count of trafficking in methamphetamine.

The search warrant for the drug charges was not immediately available in the Halifax County Clerk of Court office as Hoots was scheduled for an initial district court appearance today on those counts. The sheriff’s office confirmed today that the drug seizure following the execution of the search warrant included approximately an ounce of meth.

The search warrants that Watkins wrote were filed and says that a notification of a National Center for Missing and Exploited Children cyber tip had been uploaded and that the detective reviewed the file.

The file had been uploaded to a Dropbox account with Hoots’s email. The file was an 18-second video of a pubescent female removing her clothes, apparently aware of the camera.

All electronics reviewed, including an iPhone at his business workspace, revealed the same video, according to one of the search warrants. That iPhone was seized.

A search of his residence in the 100 block of Graystone Street resulted in the seizure of an Acer laptop, a silver laptop, a Gateway laptop, a Samsung phone and two iPhones.

“Once the video is processed we will see if there will be more charges filed,” Watkins said.

The HCSO said in a statement Friday that Hoots was the subject of an investigation that began on October 7 that child sexual abuse material had been uploaded from a residence in the county.

Watkins identified Hoots through multiple search warrants and on Thursday detectives and a special agent with Homeland Security executed them, the first being served where he worked. He was taken into custody at the dealership as detectives were also executing a search warrant at his residence on Graystone Street.

During the search of the residence, narcotics were located in plain view. 

The Halifax Regional Drug and Gang Task Force was notified of the findings. They responded with an additional search warrant for narcotics where more items were seized. 

Before the search of the residence was completed, Hoots made the $5,000 bond given for one count of felony third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. 

On Friday he was arrested again for felony possession of schedule II controlled substance, felony possession with intent to sell/deliver schedule II controlled substance, felony maintaining a vehicle/dwelling place for controlled substance, felony trafficking in methamphetamine and misdemeanor possess drug paraphernalia. 

In addition to his first appearance today on the drug charges he is scheduled for a January 23 district court date on the child exploitation count.