DeKalb County Couple Arrested in Hart County Following Child Exploitation Investigation

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has arrested a DeKalb County couple following an investigation into the alleged production and distribution of child sexual abuse material, authorities said.

According to the GBI, 20-year-old Guiseppe Tanasie and 23-year-old Francisca Istraila, both of Stonecrest in DeKalb County, were charged with Sexual Exploitation of Children.

The investigation began after the GBI’s Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes (CEACC) Unit received a Cyber Tipline report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding the production and distribution of child sexual abuse material online.

Investigators determined the couple was traveling from their home in DeKalb County to a destination in Virginia. With assistance from the Hart County Sheriff’s Office, authorities located the pair Friday, May 15, traveling northbound on Interstate 85 in Hart County near the South Carolina state line.

Tanasie and Istraila were taken into custody and booked into the Hart County Jail.

The case is part of an ongoing effort by the Georgia Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, which operates through the GBI’s CEACC Unit. The ICAC program was established by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing spread of child sexual abuse material online and to investigate predators seeking contact with minors through the internet.

Anyone with information related to child exploitation cases is encouraged to contact the GBI CEACC Unit at 404-270-8870 or submit a tip through the CyberTipline at CyberTipline.org. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by calling 1-800-597-TIPS (8477), online through the GBI website, or through the See Something, Send Something mobile app.