Richard Alexander Brant, 35, of Friday Harbor, has been charged with two counts of Dealing in Depictions of a Minor Engaged in Sexually Explicit Conduct in the First Degree and two counts of Possession of Depictions of a Minor Engaged in Sexually Explicit Conduct in the First Degree.

“This case was a collaborative investigation with Homeland Security Investigations, Naval Criminal Investigative Services and the Seattle Police Department ICAC Unit, which is also the Lead Agency for the Washington Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force,” said San Juan County Sheriff Eric Peter.

Brant’s initial court appearance was on July 25. His bail was set at $250,000, and he was transported to the Skagit County Jail for holding. Bond was posted and he is currently out on bail. His arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 5.

During the hearing, the defendant’s father, Albert Brant, spoke to the courtroom. Albert identified himself as a Washington State Ferries captain on the inter-island route, and he urged the judge not to detain his son on the mainland as it would require him to take a day off, which would mean canceled ferry service. He said he is entrusted with ferry assets “worth hundreds of millions of dollars” and the lives of thousands of passengers. Albert also stated that he needs Richard to help around his property and that while the charges stem from nine instances of sexually explicit material, the correct number is two.

Details of the case

In November 2023, the Seattle Police Department Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force assigned a CyberTip case to the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office. The task force’s initial investigation revealed that the suspect resided in San Juan County. A social media platform alerted authorities after Richard Brant allegedly downloaded and shared images that depicted sexually explicit images of pre-pubescent children.

San Juan detectives continued the investigation. Search warrants were served on Brant’s electronic accounts and phone and later his residence. It was determined he was set to graduate from a Naval Academy in Michigan in March 2024. In May, he was transferred to a base in Connecticut. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service and Homeland Security Investigations provided his location.

San Juan County Superior Court issued a nationwide extraditable arrest warrant for Brant on May 7. HSI and NCIS arrested him on May 13. He was transported back to Washington state by the U.S. Marshal Service. Brant has no criminal history.

Sheriff Peter emails state regarding father’s comments

On Aug. 2, Sheriff Eric Peter sent the following email to WSDOT leadership as well as the San Juan County Council, County Manager, Senator Lovelett, Representation Lekanoff and Representative Ramel.

“I am writing you today to inform you of extremely inappropriate comments that come across as a threat to the operation of our Inter-Island Ferry here in San Juan County, which were made by Ferry Captain Albert Brant, while in WSF Uniform on 7/25/24. Captain Brant was speaking at his son’s criminal court appearance, post arrest and transport to San Juan County by the U.S. Marshal Service, on multiple charges related to child pornography. While Captain Brant was speaking (public recording of the hearing is attached) at the 14-minute & 36-second mark on the recording, he talks about the burden of having to take off work if his son is held in the Skagit County Jail on bail and stated the following, “If I’m not working, the ferry’s not running here, ok?” I encourage you to listen to the whole recording, especially the portion between the 12-minute and 35-second mark and the 16-minute and 41-second mark where Captain Brant is speaking.

“I, along with multiple other colleagues, were appalled at the arrogant attitude and threatening comments made by Captain Brant that somehow his son’s possible incarceration would somehow negatively affect our transit system in San Juan County, especially in this unstable time we are currently in with seemingly weekly cancellations of our Inter-Island Ferry. As the Sheriff, if one of our employees were to make such egregious and unprofessional statements like this regarding our service to the community if we didn’t get our way with something, that would be deplorable, and I would want to immediately be notified so I could take swift action to remedy the situation.

“If our community was aware of what many would interpret as a threat to our Inter-Island Ferry service, they would be outraged. The Inter-Island Ferry service is very vital to our community members for personal transportation, transportation of kids to schools, and more importantly, for their livelihood, as many people live and work on different islands in our community.

“As a veteran law enforcement officer for over 29 years, it is offensive that Captain Brant would “name drop” members of the Sheriff’s Office that he allegedly knows as if that should somehow afford him special treatment over anyone else in the community. As the leader of this agency, I ensure that we abide by the laws of the State of Washington and the policies of our agency, and we don’t conduct ourselves or make our decisions based on who we know or what their position is in the community. Additionally, while I firmly stand by the belief that “all persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law,” these are very serious allegations of children being violated, and for Captain Brant to appear in court in his official WSF Uniform and downplay these horrific allegations is appalling. As a fellow leader of a government organization in this state, I feel it is my duty to make you aware of this incident just as I would want to be made aware of such egregious conduct if it was one of our employees. Again, as the Sheriff, I would be appalled if one of my employees made statements like this, especially if the were in uniform, representing our agency.

“I am happy to talk in person, over the phone, or via video conference, with anyone on this correspondence who would like to discuss this further.”