Chattooga County is currently home to 138 registered sex offenders, according to the latest data. Authorities recently announced the arrest of one such offender, Jason Leon Thomas, for violating the terms of his probation.

Thomas, age 43, was taken into custody this past week. Specific details regarding the nature of his probation violation have not yet been released by law enforcement officials.

In 2018, when he was 36 years old and a resident of Trion, Thomas was arrested and charged with a staggering 100 counts of sexual exploitation of a child.

At the time of his 2018 arrest, Chattooga County Sheriff Mark Schrader provided extensive details on the investigation that led to Thomas’s charges. The probe began in August 2017, initiated by Sheriff’s Office Investigator Jason Burrage, an affiliate member of Georgia’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.

“In August 2017 Sheriff Office Investigator Jason Burrage, as an affiliate member of Georgia’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, began an investigation regarding suspected child pornography. The investigation started from two tips received by Investigator Burrage from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. This investigation led to the execution of a search warrant at a residence occupied by Jason Leon Thomas located on Moore Street in Trion. Pursuant to that search warrant Thomas’s cell phone was seized and submitted to a digital forensic examiner with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The results of that examination revealed numerous images, 100 of which were found to be in violation of Georgia’s computer pornography and sexual exploitation of children act,” Sheriff Schrader said in a statement following the 2018 arrest.

The ongoing monitoring of registered sex offenders like Thomas is a critical component of public safety efforts in Chattooga County. Authorities regularly update the online sex offender registry to ensure community awareness and compliance with state laws.