Moment cops arrest Ashlee Cheatham, 19, for child sex abuse after her distraught boyfriend ‘found shocking photos of his three-year-old daughter while scrolling through her phone’

Bodycam footage has emerged of the moment cops in Oklahoma arrested a woman after her boyfriend allegedly discovered evidence she had sexually abused his three-year-old daughter.

Ashlee Cheatham, 19, can be seen opening the door to officers from the Stillwater Police Department (SPD) wearing nothing but a plain sweater.

Cops are heard telling Cheatham she is under arrest for sexual battery of a minor, to which Cheatham replies incredulously: ‘A minor? Oh my god!’.

Cheatham, who had reportedly applied for a job at a local elementary school, then begins sobbing as the officers carry out the arrest. 

SPD later explained Cheatham was detained on August 22, shortly after a man stormed into the lobby and demanded to speak to officers about a child abuse case. 

‘The parent disclosed he recently met a girl online from the Oklahoma City area. She became his girlfriend and moved in with him – while she was sleeping he went through her phone and found disturbing images and videos of his three-year-old daughter,’ their statement read.

Police did not reveal exactly what kind of material was discovered on the phone, but Cheatham’s charges include sexual abuse of a child under 12 and the manufacture or distribution of child pornography.

Lieutenant TJ Low later told the Kansas City Star that the man explained to officers he had a strange feeling that Cheatham, whom he had met online, was ‘up to something’. 

This gut feeling led him to check his partner’s phone while she was sleeping, and allegedly to discover evidence she had sexually abused his infant daughter. 

‘It was all very disturbing, that’s why we made the arrest that day. 

‘A lot of us are parents, the police officers here, and members of the community as well. If you had that little sinking feeling, trust your gut,’ Lieutenant Low said.

‘Do a thorough background check on everybody that’s going to watch your kids.’

Cheatham’s arrest came as she was ‘in the process of being hired’ by Nicoma Park Elementary School as a paraprofessional. 

A school spokesperson confirmed to local outlet KOCO that the hiring process was promptly terminated following the arrest. 

‘The suspect never worked for the district, never received a paycheck, and has never been with any of our students,’ the statement said.