The following report comes from the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office:
Burlington County Prosecutor Robert D. Bernardi and Mount Laurel Police Chief Dennis Cribben have announced that a 32-year-old Mt. Laurel resident was arrested yesterday on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography.
The man, of Country Club Parkway, was charged with four counts of endangering the welfare of children.
Specifically, the man is accused of knowingly distributing items depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child (second degree); knowingly possessing items depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child with the intent to distribute (second degree); knowingly storing or maintaining items depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child using a filesharing program which is designated as available for searching by or copying to one or more other computers (second degree); and knowingly possessing, knowingly viewing, or knowingly having under his control, through any means, including the Internet, an item depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child (third degree).
The investigation was initiated in the fall of 2015 by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Newark field office, and the operation expanded to include detectives from the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office High-Tech Crimes Unit and the Mt. Laurel Police Department.
Investigators determined that the man downloaded multiple images of child pornography onto his home computer and also used file sharing software to make the material available online for others to access and download.
The man was arrested yesterday morning following the execution of a search warrant at his residence that resulted in the seizure of digital storage devices.
The man was lodged in the Burlington County Jail on $150,000 full bail. He will have a first appearance in Superior Court in Mt. Holly this afternoon. The case will then be sent to a grand jury to be considered for indictment.
The Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office High-Tech Crimes Unit is a member of the New Jersey State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and the New Jersey State Police Cyber Terrorism Task Force.
