Brother of Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock charged with child porn possession in L.A.

A brother of Las Vegas mass shooter Stephen Paddock was arrested in Los Angeles on Wednesday on suspicion of possessing hundreds of images of child pornography, according to authorities.

Bruce Douglas Paddock, 58, was taken into custody at a nursing facility in the 5300 block of Laurel Canyon Boulevard, in the Valley Village neighborhood, and booked at 8 a.m. Television news footage showed Paddock in a wheelchair being loaded into the back of a van by Los Angeles Police Department officers.

Documents filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court outlined 20 criminal charges against Paddock, all related to possession of child pornography or the sexual exploitation of children. The felony complaint for the arrest warrant accused Paddock of having more than 600 pornographic images of children or youths, including 10 or more images showing a child younger than 12.

The investigation of Paddock began after evidence was found in a Sun Valley business where he had been squatting, the LAPD said in a statement. The evidence was found after Paddock was evicted, police said.

Paddock was homeless at the time and couldn’t be found, the LAPD said, adding that investigations “recently” tracked him to the North Hollywood facility where he was arrested Wednesday.

The LAPD released a photo of Paddock “in case there may be victims of unreported incidents,” who might see it and contact authorities, the department said.

Josh Rubenstein, an LAPD spokesman, said Paddock’s arrest was the result of an independent investigation by the LAPD and not related to the deadly shooting rampage in Las Vegas. The LAPD’s case began before the shooting, he added.

“There’s no connection,” he said.

On the night of Oct. 1, 64-year-old Stephen Paddock fired on the crowd at a country musical festival from his hotel room in Las Vegas. Paddock killed 58 people in the meticulously planned attack and wounded hundreds more before he shot and killed himself. His motivation remains a mystery, authorities say.

On Wednesday, Sandra Breault, a spokeswoman for the FBI in Las Vegas, declined to comment on Bruce Paddock’s arrest.

Bruce Paddock was apprehended at a nursing home that offers patients long- and short-term medical care. A spokeswoman for the facility confirmed the police activity occurred there but declined to comment on Paddock, citing patient privacy laws.

The suspect is one of four brothers. Their father, Benjamin Hoskins Paddock, was a convicted bank robber who was once placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted list.

Bruce Paddock has had numerous run-ins with local law enforcement over the last 25 years, according to Los Angeles County criminal records.

In 1989, he was charged with assault and battery and criminal contempt of court, although the charges were later dismissed, according to court records.

In 1993, Paddock was charged with annoying a child under 18 but was acquitted, court records show.

Between 1994 and 1995, prosecutors accused Paddock of various property crimes and driving without a license. He twice pleaded no contest to driving on a suspended license and to tampering with a vehicle, according to court documents.

More recently, he was charged with burglary and petty theft while having a previous conviction. He pleaded no contest to petty theft, and the burglary charge was dismissed, records show.

In separate cases in 2005 and 2006, Paddock was charged with making verbal threats, vandalism and arson. He was convicted of making threats and vandalism, but the arson charges were dismissed.

He was convicted of criminal contempt of court in 2007, according to public records.

Paddock pleaded no contest to vandalism in 2014, court records show.

kate.mather@latimes.com

joseph.serna@latimes.com

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UPDATES:

11:55 a.m.: This article was updated with details on Bruce Paddock’s criminal record.

11:05 a.m.: This article was updated with comments from LAPD spokesman Josh Rubenstein.

10:30 a.m.: This article was updated with details from the felony complaint submitted for the arrest warrant for Douglas Paddock.

10 a.m.: This article was updated with details on where the suspect was taken into custody.

9:20 a.m.: This article was updated with comments from FBI spokeswoman Sandra Breault.

This article was originally published at 8:45 a.m.