A Kenosha man faces indictment for possession of child pornography after investigators executing a search warrant on his apartment discovered hundreds of indecent images.

Authorities said the apartment was “decorated” with a collection of children’s toys and dolls and adult- and child-sized mannikins posed in sexual positions.

There were also 21 firearms in the apartment, some of them loaded, along with boxes of ammunition. “He said he needed the weapons because there were creepy people in his apartment complex,” said Assistant District Attorney Rosa Delgado.

The suspect, Kevin Derks, 53, is being held on $50,000 cash bond following his bond hearing Friday afternoon.

Delgado and a spokesman for the Wisconsin Department of Justice said they expect Derks to be indicted Monday.

Delgado said she expects that he will initially be charged with 20 counts of possession of child pornography, but said further charges could be filed as investigators continue to go through the materials seized from Derks’ apartment on Wednesday.

According to Delgado, agents from the Department of Justice began investigating Derks in December 2008 as part of an investigation into users of a child pornography Web site on which members paid a monthly fee for access to pornographic images.

Agents’ initial visit

On Nov. 17, according to an affidavit in support of a search warrant, agents went to Derks’ apartment, 4017 39th Ave. Apt. 2. The agents asked Derks if he would speak to them about “inappropriate use of a computer that was traced to Derks’ credit card.”

Derks agreed to speak to the officers, but refused to allow them into his apartment, instead taking them to a basement storage area in the apartment building to talk. During the conversation, Derks fainted and struck his head on the floor. The agents called 911, and Derks was taken to a local hospital, where he was kept under guard.

The following day, agents were granted a search warrant and searched Derks’ apartment.

According to Delgado, investigators found about 100 DVDs containing multiple photographic images of child pornography, with images of children as young as 1 depicted in sexual situations.

Some of the DVDs were labeled “Kenosha beaches.” According to Delgado, Derks told investigators that for the last five years he has visited Kenosha beaches and taken photographs and videos of children on the beach.

Along with the DVDs, Delgado said, the apartment was filled with a collection of stuffed animals and dolls for children, photos of children in sexual poses on the walls, two child-sized and two adult-sized mannikins that were posed in sexual positions.

Neighbors in shock

Friday evening some of Derks’ neighbors in the Maplewood Apartments complex still hadn’t heard about what investigators found in the apartment and were shocked to learn of the pending charges.

“Oh my, God,” said one woman who has lived in the building for 16 years and wished not to be identified. “We just thought he fell down the stairs and hit his head.”

That woman, a man and another woman from Derks’ building said no children reside there and described Derks as a “a very quiet” man who “kept to himself,” but who was friendly in passing.

“He was a pretty good guy as far as I know,” said the second woman. “I only knew him for three years and he mostly stayed to himself.”

Residents from neighboring buildings were equally stunned by the news.

“We saw the police here a couple of days ago and were wondering what they were doing,” said a 24-year old man who moved in within the last month. “Wow. That is very shocking.”

Delgado said investigators are still working through the “tons” of materials taken from Derks’ apartment, including material on his computer hard drive.

The suspect has never been married and has no children, Delgado said. He has no criminal history. She said he has lived in his apartment for 17 years.

In the affidavit in support of the search warrant, a neighbor told investigators Derks was a “computer wizard” who had helped her with her home computer and its setup. She described him as “very secretive” and said “no one was ever allowed in his apartment.”

– Jill Tatge-Rozell also contributed to this story.