TBI agents have arrested and charged a Sparta man in connection to an ongoing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) investigation.
In December 2024, agents received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) concerning child sexual abuse material being sent to others by a Snapchat user, later identified as 40-year-old Timothy Rankin. Agents working alongside members of the 13th Judicial District Attorney’s Office and the White County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Rankin’s Sparta home.
Agents subsequently arrested Rankin, charging him with one count of Violation of Sexual Offender Registry. White County deputies booked Rankin into the White County Jail, where as of Wednesday (March 19, 2025), he was being held on $15,000 bond. The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information about this case should contact 1-800-TBI-FIND.