A Tampa man was caught looking at child pornography on his laptop while sitting on the sidewalk in front of a strip mall, detectives said.
Benjamin Ashauer, 29, was arrested Thursday and charged with 50 counts of possession of child pornography.
A shopper notified the sheriff's office at about 9:30 a.m. that Ashauer was sitting in front of the Terrace Collections strip mall on East Busch Boulevard, according to a sheriff's office report.
When plain-clothes detectives arrived at the scene, they found Ashauer still looking at photos of small children posing erotically, the report said.
Detectives examined Ashauer's computer and found a "substantial amount" of photos showing children ranging in age from infants to about 12 years old engaged in various sexual activities.
Investigators said Ashauer was using the open free Wi-Fi connections at the strip mall to access child porn websites.
Ashauer was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail. Bond has been set at $375,000.
Additional charges may be filed pending the outcome of the forensic examination on the computer.