Child Sex Trafficking in Higher Education
When a University of North Dakota professor was arrested on child pornography charges, The Dakota Student asked “We can’t help but wonder if this type of thing is common in other schools around the nation?” The answer is, unfortunately, yes. A concerning number of higher education employees are being investigated, arrested and prosecuted for sexual crimes against children.
From Assistant Dean Michael Morris at University of Virginia who downloaded infant anal rape to a Creative Writing Professor Kirk Nesset at Allegheny College who possessed over half a million videos/images of child sexual abuse material (CSEM) in folders called “kidsfuck,” the organized crime of child sex trafficking, child pornography and other forms of child sexual abuse appears to be common in higher education sector. Often committed in the workplace — offices, classrooms, summer camps on campus, work computers and electronic infrastructures — creating additional concerns related to campus safety, and potentially fraud, the higher education has been reluctant to discuss in a transparent manner.
This research-in-progress details 223 professors and staff investigated, arrested/prosecuted on child sexual abuse related charges (with three cases investigated with no charges brought). This data set does not represent the total number of higher education employees investigated for participating in these crimes — just a sample.
Professors, Presidents, Provosts & Deans
(1) Niles Edward Lehman, 57-year-old chemistry professor at Portland State University,
was arrested and indicted, 21 February 2019, on 35 child pornography related charges of encouraging child sexual abuse.
In a deal, Lehman pleaded no contest to two counts of first-degree encouraging child sexual abuse and the judge dismissed the remaining 33 counts. He was sentenced, 8 July 2019, to 2.5 years in jail followed by five years of supervised release.
He was caught posting images to a public media account Tumblr. At the time of his arrest, he had “hundreds” of images of children, as young as three-years-old, being raped and sexually abused.
The university placed Lehman on paid leave upon news of his arrest and then allowed him to resign in May 2019.
Lehman’s Ph.D. is from UCLA. He had been employed with Portland State University since 2001 and was awarded Oregon Scientist of the Year, 2018, by the Oregon Academy of Science. Lehman posted $250,000 bail and was on supervised release pending his sentencing. Lehman must register as a sex offender.
(2) Roland L. Higgins, 72-year-old professor of East Asian History & Global Studies, Keene State College
was arrested and charged, 4 May 2018, on ten felony child pornography counts. In November 2018, he indicted on 26 child pornography charges. He was trading in the rape of children as young as 5-years-old.
Higgins was known for his work on Mongolia and his extensive travel to “East Asia… and study tours to China.” He is a member of the Asian Studies Association and the Association for Ming Studies and has spoken about organ trafficking. His wife, Lynn A. Higgins, is a professor at Dartmouth College with published work on rape.
Higgins had been employed at Keene State for 36 years. As of 2016, he earned $105,000. Keene State placed him on leave upon his arrest and terminated his employment on 30 June 2018. His last court date was set for 13 May 2021 but was continued with no new court date schedule as of June 2021. Higgins remains free on $30,000 bond.
Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
(3) Peter R. Kiwitt, a 59-year-old assistant professor of film at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT),
was arrested, 21 December 2016, on child pornography related charges and convicted of child pornography possession on 13 April 2017. Kiwitt was sentenced to 180 days to be served on weekends at Monroe County Jail and 10 years of supervised released.
In August 2019, Kiwitt was arrested again and charged with sex trafficking of a minor, sex trafficking of a minor using force, fraud, and coercion, and possession of child pornography. The second arrest included links to an overdose of a female child that Kiwitt has been charged with trafficking. He was indicted, 9 July 2020, with a superseding indictment returned on 2 February 2021,on the second federal charges and is being held in federal custody during the legal process-still pending.
When Kiwitt was employed at RIT, prior to the second arrest, although Title IX complaints were reportedly filed against him and the student paper reported “many students reported submitting teacher evaluations including comments and accusations about Kiwitt’s inappropriate behavior in and outside of the classroom,” the university awarded Kiwitt tenure status. Kiwitt is no longer employed at RIT. RIT will not disclose if Kiwitt was on paid or unpaid leave after his arrest or if he was allowed to resign with full benefits or was terminated.
Prior to joining RIT Kiwitt was a professor at Elon University in North Carolina and before that he worked in Hollywood as a director, writer and producer including as Director of Creative Affairs at MGM Television. Kiwitt won awards for a film he directed called Silent Lies which Variety described as “a tale of brutal sexual abuse” of a young girl produced by Baby Head Productions. As of 21 November 2017, he retained his membership with the Directors Guild of America despite being a registered sex offender. After his second arrest he is, reportedly, no longer a Guild member. In Los Angeles (LA) Kiwitt also volunteered with inner-city children in the LA school system.
(4) David D. Blasczak, 69-year-old Assistant Clinical Professor Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
and clinical preceptor in the Physician Assistant (PA) Program in Family Medicine, was arrested, 18 January 2018, on child pornography related charges. He pleaded guilty, 14 August 2018, to three counts of receipt, and was sentenced, 21 November 2018, to 21.8 years in federal prison.
At the time of his arrest, Blasczak had over 8,000 CSEM images/videos including of infants and toddlers and a dog raping a prepubescent girl. He drugged and sexually abused children, aged 7–12 years-old, at his daughter’s sleep over parties. He also sexually abused his own daughter. She later committed suicide. Blasczak created child pornography of this abuse of at least 40 different incidents involving approximately 8–10 children. Although he had been reported to the police, three times, local prosecutors consistently declined to prosecute.
Blasczak had been employed at RIT for nearly twenty years and had been awarded RIT’s Outstanding Clinical Preceptor of the Year. He also worked as a family medicine physician at Clyde Family Health Center and in Clyde-Savannah Central School District as their school physician and emergency health care provider. Blasczak surrendered his New York medical license soon after his arrest and was terminated by Clyde Family Health Center.
(5) Stephen James Kilpatrick, a 63-year-old Professor of Mathematics at Liberty University, was arrested,
27 June 2018, on six charges; three counts of indecent liberties of a child younger than 15-years-old and three counts of the use of communications systems to facilitate certain offenses involving children.
Kilpatrick’s charges were sent to a grand jury in November 2018. He was found guilty, 5 June 2019, on five counts of child sex solicitation. Kilpatrick was free on $125,000 bond until June 2019 when he was taken into custody while awaiting sentencing. A judge affirmed his 35 year prison sentence on 26 November 2019.
Kilpatrick was traveling to meet, what he thought was a 13-year-old child for the purposes of exploitation and abuse (in reality an undercover investigator) when he was arrested. Liberty University suspended Kilpatrick upon news of his arrest and later terminated him. This is, at least, the third arrest of a Liberty University employee on related charges. See Jeremey Cole Whorley in the Staff Section of this list.
Kilpatrick taught Bible lessons, in his home to children. He filed an appeal to his conviction in February 2020.
(6) David Blair DeHaven, 49-year-old Adjunct Business Professor Liberty University
was arrested, 7 August 2019, on child pornography related charges and indicted, on the same day, on six charges of “filming and photographing minors in a state of undress.”
DeHaven was found guilty, 16 July 2020, in a jury trial of three counts of unlawfully filming or photographing a non-consenting person and four counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. On 21 January 2021, the judge dismissed one count of unlawful filming and sentenced DeHaven to 30 days suspended jail sentence per count on the six remaining charges with 12 months unsupervised probation.
DeHaven had installed hidden cameras in his home bathroom, in addition to elsewhere in his house, which captured people using the bathroom. These cameras were discovered by a teenage girl who was at DeHaven’s house for a party his teenage son hosted which included alcohol.
Liberty suspended DeHaven after his arrest. He is no longer employed at Liberty University. DeHaven was also James River High School’s Parent Teacher Student Association (PTA) president and was previously Dean of the School of Information Systems and Technology, Kaplan University and Vice President with First Union Bank.
(7) George Coleman Baker, 43-year-old Adjunct Professor Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian
University (TCU) was arrested, 23 March 2018, on child pornography charges. He was sentenced, 20 July 2018, to 10 years in jail per each of 33 counts and 10 years supervised release for one count. His projected release date from Texas prison is 2038.
Baker was the Program Manager for “Soul Repair Center” at Brite Divintiy School. As Baker is currently in jail, he is no longer employed at TCU, although the terms of his separation are not clear. Baker was a “life-coach” and had been, according to the Burleson Star, a pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Stamford, Texas, Calvary Baptist Church in Seymour, Texas and First Baptist church in Weinart, Texas. His Huffington Post account, under the name Coleman Baker, is still live. He called himself a Scholar of Religion.
(8) Scott Cameron Lowe, 57-year-old Philosophy Department Chair, Bloomsburg University,
was arrested, 15 February 2018, and charged with five child pornography related counts, arraigned on 5 April 2018, and was free after posting $250,000 bail. He pleaded guilty, June 2018, to four counts and was sentenced, 27 September 2018, to 1–2 years in jail.
Lowe was trading in child sex abuse on his university computer including children as young as seven years old. University officials immediately reported Lowe’s activities to the Attorney General who issued a public statement: “My office has a zero tolerance policy for sexual predators — no matter who they are. These charges are particularly heinous because the accused is a professor — someone trusted to work closely with students. This professor is charged with viewing child pornography on his computer in his university office. That is outrageous, and he will be held accountable. No one is above the law.”
Lowe was suspended and then retired after his arrest. He had been employed by Bloomsburg University for 30 years. On 11 September 2019, Lowe began his 15 years as a registered sex offender.
(9) Harrison Ben Smith, 37-year-old Associate Professor of Engineering, Otterbein University,
was arrested, 11 May 2016, on child pornography related charges including of a “ of a “prepubescent” girl being raped by a man.” Smith pleaded not guilty to all ten charges and filed to suppress evidence.
He was indicted on all ten counts, 8 November 2017, and on 17 February 2021, he changed his plea to a guilty to counts one, six and ten. His sentencing date is set for 24 June 2021.
Smith has been free on personal recognizance since his 2016 arrest. Smith’s wife, Sarah E. Buckley, is a local lawyer. Otterbein placed Smith on paid leave upon news of his arrest and then allowed him to resign on 20 May 2016. Smith was a lecturer at Ohio State University for three years prior to being hired by Otterbein in November 2015.
(10) Jack Edgar Harclerode, 71-year-old Herbert L. Spencer Professor of Biology (emeritus)
Bucknell University, was arrested in 2007, on child pornography charges and found guilty of 20 possession charges. Harclerode also pleaded guilty to another 11 counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse.
On 18 March 2009, he was sentenced to 13.9 to 27.5 years on the child pornography charges and sentenced (in Union County), January 2011, to 5 to 10 years in jail followed by 10 years of probation on child sex abuse charges. Harclerode was also found guilty (in Columbia County) for the rape of a ten-year-old boy and sentenced, in 2009, to another 9 to 30 months in prison concurrent with the 2011, sentencing in Union County. In 2016, his motion for early parole was denied. On 4 June 2020, Harclerode was released on parole. The parole board failed to notify the prosecutor, Union County District Attorney, who had previously opposed Harclerode’s parole.
Over a period of years, Harclerode repeatedly raped, at least, two young boys in his Bucknell University office. At the time of his arrest, he had hundreds of images of child rape on his computer including children as young as five-years-old and possible abducted children. These images included the above mentioned sentencing in Columbia Country for the rape of a 10-year-old boy at a campground in 2006. Although Harclerode is listed as a professor emeritus on Bucknell’s archived course catalog, his emeritus status was revoked by Bucknell. The course catalogs are “historical documents” and are not edited.
Harclerode is a registered sex offender.
(11) Ronald Anthony Usiewicz, 69-year-old President of International College of Hospitality Management, Everest College and Anthem College,
was arrested, September 2017, and charged with 144 counts of child pornography charges. He was trading in the rape of infants as young as six-months-old and dogs raping children.
Usiewicz pleaded nolo contendere to all 144 charges and was sentenced, 2 November 2018, to eight years in jail followed by 5 years of supervised release for count one served concurrently with 16 years jail and 10 years supervised release for counts 2–144.
Usiewicz was a professor at various universities including University of Wisconsin-Stout, University of Akron, Pennsylvania State University, University of New Haven,
Sierra Nevada College, San Jose State University and the College of Boca Raton. His LinkedIn profile listed him as president of: (1) International College of Hospitality Management, (2) Everest College and (3) Anthem College.
He is a registered sex offender in Florida where he is incarcerated.
Auburn University
(12) Michael Glenn Rich, 56-year-old (former) Assistant Professor of Journalism Auburn University,
was arrested, 16 November 2017, on three counts of child pornography possession.
Rich was indicted on all three counts, 16 November 2017, pleaded guilty to all three counts and was sentenced, 1 February 2018, to 18 months suspended jail sentenced followed by two years probation.
Rich had been free on $45,000 bail throughout the legal process. Rich was an Episcopal priest in Birmingham, Alabama and no longer employed at Auburn University when he was arrested. The Episcopal Diocese of Alabama immediately suspended Rich after his arrest and released the following statement: “Our diocese is grieved by the arrest of Michael Rich, who had been serving as a priest in Birmingham. Upon learning of the charges against him, Rich was immediately suspended from the practice of ministry within the Episcopal Church, and proceedings under the disciplinary canons of our church have been initiated.”
Rich is a registered sex offender in Alabama.
(13) William Matthew Carter, 52-year-old English Professor, Auburn University,
was arrested, 10 May 2019, on possession of child pornography charges in Blacksburg, Virginia and five additional child pornography related charges in Auburn, Alabama on 13 May 2019.
Carter was detained in Virginia, awaiting extradition to Alabama, on $50,000 bond. On, 19 March 2020, he was arrested by Alabama police on the original five counts of child pornography possession and held on $125,000 bond. As of June 2021, Carter remains in Lee County Alabama Detention Center pending a grand jury set for 16 August 2021. In Virginia, Carter waived his indictment, plead no contest and was convicted on 3 September 2019. He was sentenced, 2 December 2019, on one count of child pornography possession to five years of jail with four years suspended followed five years of supervised probation and is a registered sex offender.
Investigators found CSEM in Carter’s home and workplace. Auburn University terminated Carter’s employment on the day of his arrest, 10 May 2019. This is, at least, the third arrest at Auburn University, details for Auburn University Police Lt. Dennis Rae Ledbetter are the Staff Section.
(14) Nathan A. Madsen, 37-year-old Visiting Assistant Professor of Music, University of Tampa (UT) & Director of UT’s community orchestra,
was arrested, March 2016, on child pornography related charges. On 3 February 2017, he pleaded guilty to possession and to enticing a child to produce child pornography and was sentenced, 26 May 2017, to 17.5 years in federal prison followed by lifetime supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Madsen was caught responding to Backpage.com advertisement from a man who said he was a “step-father” sharing his 14-year-old daughter for rape placed by an undercover Homeland Security agent. Madsen agreed to pay $140 dollars to rape the child. He was also exploiting a 16-year-old girl to produced child pornography for him including “sadistic or masochistic” abuse and sexual torture.
Madsen has a Master’s degree from Bard College and was a doctoral candidate at Texas Tech University. He was Music Director of the Woodstock Chamber Orchestra, Associate Conductor of the Texas Tech University Symphony Orchestra, Assistant Conductor of the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, and staff of the Greater Princeton Youth Orchestra. He also served on Mormon missions. University of Tampa placed him on paid leave after his arrest and then terminated his employment.
(15) Steven Phillip Brey, 53-year-old Dean, School of Arts & Humanities, Associate Professor of Religion, Methodist University,
was arrested, 25 October 2017, on campus on 18 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and indicted on 28 November 2017.
Brey pleaded guilty, 15 December 2017, to six counts of second degree sexual exploitation of a minor and was sentenced to 2–7.5 years in jail, 100% of which was suspended with 52 days credit for time spent in jail and 3 years probation. He must register as a sex offender for 30 years. Brey was caught when he sent rape videos of children as young as 3-years-old to undercover law enforcement.
Brey’s research included “Biblical studies and the history of Christianity.” He holds a Master’s degree from Yale and a Ph.D. from Notre Dame. Brey had been employed at Methodist University for 17 years. He is no longer employeed at Methodist University.
(16) Billy John Lockhart, 36-year-old Physiatrist University of California San Francisco (UCSF)
Department of Psychiatry, was arrested, May 2017, on child pornography charges. He pleaded guilty, 18 July 2018, to one count and was sentenced, 27 November 2018, to three years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release. Lockhart must register as a sex offender.
At the time of his arrest he had more than 1,500 images and 280 videos of children being raped including infants as young as 6-months-old and masochistic sadistic and violent conduct. Lockhart also had “stories about children being raped, information on how to do it and conversations with others about exploiting children.”
Lockhart used the university’s internet network to trade in child rape. The university placed Lockhart on leave upon news of his arrest and terminated him on 31 August 2017. The Medical Board of California revoked his medical license 30 January of 2019. Lockhart is a graduate of Yale University’s School of Medicine. He is also a returned Peace Corps Volunteer having served in Senegal. Lockhart’s partner, an adult pornography actor, Benjamin Alfred Martin (aka Blu Kennedy) was arrested at the same time as Lockhart, May 2017, and charged with multiple child pornography offenses. Martin pleaded guilty June 2019.
Central Michigan University
(17) Mark Ranzenberger, 61-year- old Professor of Journalism, Central Michigan University (CMU),
was arrested and charged, 20 May 2016, and pleaded guilty, 27 September 2016, to one federal count of child pornography possession and four (of which three were dropped in a deal) state counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for repeatedly raping a girl younger than 13 over a 7 year period.
On 19 January 2017, Ranzenberger was sentenced in federal court to 14 years in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release. On 26 January 2017, he was sentenced to 14 to 45 years in prison in Michigan State’s Isabella County Court to be served concurrently with his federal sentencing. He remained in custody pending sentencing.
Ranzenberger was caught when he mistakenly showed child pornography to his students. A student reported the crime, triggering university police to open an investigation. At the time of his arrest, Ranzenberger was in possession of over 1,000 images/videos of child sex abuse, including the rape of infants. He also had a “grooming” document instructing pedophiles how to manipulate children from birth to age 11 “to participate in sexual acts.”
The girl whom Ranzenberger raped for years, testified at his sentencing calling him a “psychopath, monster.” She said “He’s smooth, charming, and manipulative… He was able to hide the monster he was in every word he spoke. His coworkers and family didn’t know he was a child molester.” The victim described Ranzenberger as “a slug of man” and “a pathological liar.”
Ranzenberger was vice president of the teaching faculty union and had been employed at CMU since 1999. He was placed on leave and then resigned his position 21 March 2016, before his May 2016 arrest. He also worked as a local journalist and was awarded Michigan Associated Press Managing Editors Association Award in 2012, and served on the local city planning commission.
(18) William Lord Merrill, 58-year-old Chair Department Teaching Education & Professional Development, Central Michigan University (CMU),
was arraigned, 13 November 2012, on four state child pornography related charges later dropped in lieu of one federal possession charge on 20 November 2012.
Merrill was indicted, December 2012, on two counts of receipt and pleaded guilty, 21 March 2013, to one count of receipt with the other charge dropped. He was sentenced, 23 July 2013, to 5.8 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
Merrill was trading in child rape on his work computer on campus. He was caught when IT staff noticed large amounts of data downloading. CMU immediately notified federal law enforcement, suspended Merrill and issued a statement. At the time of his arrest, Merrill had “more than 100,000 images and 60,000 videos involving bondage, bestiality and children in noticeable anguish.”
In addition to his employment at CMU, he was field director of the Michigan Mathematics Service Project for Elementary and Middle School Teachers (1990–94), a fourth-grade teacher in the Duval County Public Schools in Jacksonville, Florida (1979-1984) and a substitute teacher in the Columbus, Ohio City Schools. Merrill was free on $50,000 bond (originally $500,000) prior to sentencing.
American University
(19) Thomas Jackson Minar, 56-year-old President, Franklin College, was arrested, 6 January 2020,
on three charges of child enticement, use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime and exposing a child to harmful material. In March 2020, 12 additional child pornography possession charges were filed. As of June 2021, a jury trial is scheduled for March 2022.
Minar belonged to a CSEM group trading CSEM on KIK. He was trading in CSEM of children as young as 7-years-old and discussed raping the 4-year-old child of a man who offered to “share his son” with Minar. Animal rape was also discussed.
Minar was caught attempting to meet a 15-year-old boy. The child was an undercover law enforcement officer. Minar told the arresting officer that he, Minar, is a “distinguished person” and works in “higher education.”
Franklin College immediately terminated Minar upon his arrest, released a statement, cooperated with law enforcement’s investigation and opened their investigation “concerning Dr. Minar’s conduct while President.” The college also opened a hotline and on-line access to anonymously report any “communications with Minar that may have violated the Franklin College sexual misconduct policy.” Reports may be made by calling +1 (855) 858–3344 or online at www.integrareport.com. Franklin College also held a campus-wide community meeting to discuss Minar’s arrest and arranged for additional off-campus counseling for anyone in need.
Minar was Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations at American University from 2008 to 2015. American University has not open an investigation into Minar’s conduct, offered a hotline or other anonymous reporting mechanisms. Minar is free on $7,500 cash bond.
(20) Charles Victor Kopfstein-Penk, 74-year-old Adjunct Music Professor, American University,
Mount Vernon College and Montgomery College, was arrested, 23 May 2019, on 10, state-level, child pornography possession charges later dropped in lieu of federal possession charges which he was indicted, 10 October 2019. He pleaded guilty, 14 January 2020, to one possession charge and was sentenced to 4.5 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release and $144,000 in restitution to 35 victims.
Kopfstein-Penk told investigators was engaged in child trafficking via child pornography “collection” for over 20 years — 10 of which he conducted on the internet. He had more than 1,000 CSEM files with over 1 million images and over 6,800 videos which included sadistic abuse of young children.
Kopfstein-Penk taught music lessons to children in his home. He is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA), and the Friday Morning Music Club (FFMC). His wife, and duet-partner, Dr. Alicia Kopfstein-Penk, is an adjunct professor at American University. Kopfstein-Penk was under house arrest during the legal process. His arrest was part of Operation Broken Heart.
(21) Richard Berendzen, (now former) President, American University, was caught, 1990, by law
enforcement calling local day cares seeking to sexually abuse children. In a deal, Berendzen pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor obscene telephone calls. Fairfax County Judge J. Conrad Waters Jr. issued 30-day suspended jail sentences per charge. Berendzen committed these solicitations from his campus office. He was never charged for the possession of, in his own words, an “extensive” child pornography collection in his AU office.
Berendzen was caught when he called Susan Eva Allen, a mother operating a home-based day care. Her husband, David Allen, was a detective with Fairfax County Police Department.
A search warrant was obtained and Susan Allen recorded more than 30 hours of calls with Berendzen during which he “described going to sex slave auctions in Chicago and Detroit,” bragged about his abuse of children, his child pornography collection, the four-year-old girl who was his “sex slave,” and strapping his wife to a wheel in their basement. Berendzen asked Susan Allen if “she and her husband included their children in sex” and asked to have sex with Allen’s children. He told her he masturbated while talking with her and offered to procure a child for her to use as a “sex slave.”
Berendzen’s calls to Susan Allen followed “a pattern” of similar calls. Investigators “had been trying to identify the caller on the tape for a year.” From January to April 1990, he called 10–15 other local day cares. He also admitted to calling “as many as 15 women.” Media reports noted other witnesses, including a retired South Carolina police officer, but no one, except Allen, came forward. The Washington Post reported at the time “charges were not brought in a second case.”
Richard Berendzen remains a professor emeritus at American University.
(22) Elliott Morse McGinnies, 94-year-old Psychology Professor (emeritus) & former Department Chair, American University,
was charged, 9 October 2015, for sex crimes against children. He had previously been arrested in 1986, for sexual assault of a nine- year-old girl.
Prosecutors, repeatedly, dropped charges. American University continued to employ McGinnies after his 1986 arrests and allowed McGinnies to retain emeritus status after the renewed 2015 charges.
(23) Langley Frissell, adjunct psychology professor and Director of Distance Education, Hawaii Pacific University (HPU), was reportedly
served and search, 16 November 2017, for child pornography related charges. Frissell, apparently, committed suicide the following day on 17 November 2017.
Frissell received an award for “Excellence in Mentoring” of the on-line teaching program. The student paper reported he was available “days, evenings, and even weekends” and “ ‘lurks’ on chats until students are comfortable with technology.”
He had published research articles about student on-line chat rooms and was employed at HPU since 1999.
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University of Hawaii
(24) Beei-Huan Chao, 61-year-old Graduate Chair Mechanical Engineering Department University
of Hawaii (UH), was indicted and arrested, 3 August 2016, on two charges, one per, of possessing and transporting child pornography. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 30 May 2017, to one charge, with the other charge dropped.
He was sentenced, 27 December 2017, to 6.6 years in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release and a $35,000 fine. Chao had been trading in pre-teen hard core (PTHC) — the brutal rape and torture of young children.
The university placed Chao on paid leave upon his arrest. He was earning $114, 312 at the time and had been employed at UH since 1992. He had received the Board of Regents’ Medal of Excellence (2002) for his teaching.
Chao was free on $50,000 bond in the custody of his wife during the legal process. He is a registered sex offender and is no longer employed at UH.
(25) David Allan Stegenga, 63-year-old Professor of Mathematics University of Hawaii, was arrested
17 September 2009, on 12 state-level child sexual exploitation charges. He pleaded guilty, 18 February 2011, to all 12 counts and was sentenced, at the state-level on 4 May 2011, to five years probation with no jail time.
Stegenga raped a 7-year-old girl over a six year period. The child was a neighbor and family friend. He “used his finger and mouth to sexually assault her, and also allegedly fondled her using his hands and mouth” several times a week. He also produced child pornography of the victim.
Stegenga had been employed at UH since 1980. In 2009, he received the Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award. UH placed him on paid leave after his arrest and then allowed him to retire in 2010. He was arrested on campus. Stegenga was also the Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Honolulu Zoo Society and maintained the zoo’s website. He had been featured on a local news show as a “hero” for his volunteerism at the Honolulu Zoo.
Stegenga is a registered sex offender.
(26) Theodore Ken Ishida, 63-year-old Assistant Professor Psychology, California State University,
was arrested, 8 December 2017, on child pornography possession charges and pleaded, 19 September 2018, no contest to one count of possession. Ishida was sentenced to three years probation, 1,000 hours of community service and a lifetime on the sex offender registry.
Ishida was trading in CSEM from his university computer including infants, toddlers, rape, bondage and beastiality. At the time of his arrest he possessed over 90,000 CSEM images/videos.
The university issued a statement and placed Ishida on paid leave, after his arrest, from January 2017 to 15 March 2018, and retired upon his sentencing. The California Board of Psychology revoked Ishida’s license on 9 February 2020. Ishida has a profile on myteachinghouse.com an on-line site for ESL teachers and CELTA instructors. His profile on this site says he will retire in Japan.
(27) Christopher Blake DeZutter, Chemistry Professor University of Minnesota, was arrested,
12 September 2016, for the second time on four new counts of child pornography possession. In a deal, he pleaded guilty to one count, with the other three counts dismissed, and was sentenced, 27 February 2016, to four years in jail.
DeZutter was first arrested, 5 February 2015, on ten possession and one distribution child pornography counts and was sentenced, 16 September 2015, to 4 months in jail followed by five years probation.
DeZutter told investigators he had been trading in child sex abuse images/videos since 1996. Investigators said his University of Minnesota laptop was “full” of child sex abuse files.
Investigators said DeZutter told them, upon his arrest, “You are not going find a lot of this at home. I do most of this at the office.” The university barred DeZutter from campus and placed him on paid leave. He was terminated, for cause, on 13 February 2015.
(28) Justin X. Carroll, 67-year-old Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs & Interim Athletic
Director at Washington University (St. Louis), was indicted, 30 January 2017, on one federal charge of access with intent to view child pornography. He pleaded guilty in July 2017 and was sentenced, 26 October 2017, to 4.6 years in federal prison and supervised release for life. He is reported deceased as of 27 July 2019.
Carroll had been using university computers to trade in child rape with the handle “MOperv.” His twitter account was @WashUDeanoFun. Carroll was trading in the rape of children as young as one-year-old and potential “child snuff” videos, i.e., the violent abuse and murder of children. He was also trading in the rape and torture of boys between three and six years. He had videos of children as young as three-years-old forced to handle adult erect penises and subjected to anal rape. One video was called “boybending,”
a how-to guide for child sex abuse and grooming, “the art of remotely directing a boy on webcam, through typing text and displaying videos, to achieve a desired pose or behavior.”
Carroll submitted his resignation after his arrest and was allowed to retire. He had been at the university for 36 years. University staff, including Chancellor Emeritus William H. Danforth and current Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton, used university letterhead to send the court letters of support for Carroll. This is, at least, the second child pornography arrest at Washington University. George Wright Sessen (detailed in the Staff Section) a 42-year-old Research Technologist at the law school was arrested, 14 May 2019, on child pornography charges.
(29) Steven James Devlin, 60-year-old Vice Provost, Leigh University,
was arrested, 10 July 2007, on child sexual exploitation charges. He was sentenced, 30 September 2008, to 3–6 years in jail followed by 10 years of supervised release.
Devlin was arrested in a parking lot meeting a “mother” offering her 7-year-old and 9-year-old daughters for rape. The “mother” was, in fact, undercover law enforcement.
Devlin used university computers to arrange the meeting and to participate in on-line chats. “Phillyguy5,” Devlin’s on-line name, described a “love of teaching young girls about sex” and detailed plans for raping children — from his work computer. Devlin wrote “we get there and girls run upstairs, your follow, they come back in tshirts and nothing else, little butts sticking out, the adults are naked already, your girls sit next to me…” Devlin bragged about raping children trafficked by their mothers and claimed he and his wife, Bonnie Devlin, who was at the time a Vice President at Lehigh University, sexually abused their own children and had “groomed” them for the “lifestyle.” Bonnie Devlin was not charged and there was, apparently, no evidence she or her children were involved in abuse.
Lehigh University placed Devlin on leave and then allowed Devlin to resign. Devlin was, at least, Lehigh University’s second employee arrested on similar charges — John Early is listed in the Staff Section.
Devlin is a registered sex offender.
(30) Matthew J. McEnany, 60-year-old President of Keiser University, was caught, August 2015, by
police attempting to solicit three girls, as young as 13-years-old, for sex in exchange for money, food, clothes and cigarettes. He also asked the children to produce child pornography for him. The 15-year-old girl was nine months pregnant. McEnany told her “he could not wait for her to have the child so that they could “play,” i.e. sexually abuse the baby. He had been in contact with the 15-year-old girl at least 50 times.
Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood asked the State Attorney to bring three criminal charges against McEnany of using a computer to seduce/solicit/lure a child, travel to seduce/solicit/lure a child and lewd lascivious molestation; however, prosecutors refused to bring charges.
McEnany was caught when two of the girls and an older man car-jacked McEnany when he showed up for a meeting for sex with the children. The university suspended McEnany after the incident and, later, his employment with the university ended. In October 2018, funeral services were held for him in Port Orange, Florida.
(31) Clyde Edward Fant, 83-year-old Dean of the Chapel, O.L. Walker Professor of Christian Studies, Institute for Christian Ethics,
Stetson University, was arrested on one child pornography possession charge. Fant pleaded guilty, 7 March 2013, to the one count and was sentenced, 15 August 2013, to time served plus one day followed by five years of supervised release.
Fant was trading in “ultra hard” preteen hard core (PTHC) child rape, which means extreme torture and violence committed against very young children.
At the time of his arrest, Fant was a retired emeritus professor. He did not inform Stetson of his arrest and subsequent conviction. Upon learning of Fant’s conviction, 9 March 2017, Stetson University’s Board of Trustees Executive Committee unanimously voted to rescind awards Fant had previously received and strip Fant of his “professor emeritus” status citing “his actions and admitted guilt are not consistent with university values, mission and history, nor with the honor the designation confers.” Fant is also prohibited from university property.
In 2007, Fant was quoted by Stop Baptist Predators, saying “There’s no central database to help local churches, and some churches are less than forthcoming with information about their former pastors… the system is so loose that a criminal conviction does not necessarily end the career of a Southern Baptist preacher.”
Fant is a registered sex offender in Florida.
(32) William T. Garner, 66-year-old Dean of Education University of San Francisco (USF),
was arrested on child pornography charges and pleaded guilty, 12 December 2006, to one count of possession. Garner was sentenced, 27 March 2007, to just over five years in jail followed by three years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
At the time of his arrest, he had 15,000 images/videos of brutal child rape including of children as young as two-years-old. The prosecuting attorney said, “The children depicted in these images are the victims of horrible abuse.”
At the time of his arrest he was an emeritus professor and USF stated “William Garner no longer has any affiliation with the University of San Francisco. His relationship was terminated without privileges.” Garner had been employed by USF, a Jesuit Catholic University, since 1979.
(33) Alan Atalah, Associate Dean Bowling Green State University’s College of Technology
Architecture and Applied Engineering, was investigated, starting in September 2015, for child sex abuse material on work computers. Atalah was not arrested or charged.
Atalah was caught when he mistakenly gave the Ohio Department of Transportation (DOT) a “first-person” account of child rape, descriptions of child rape by adults and bestiality saved among other documents he was working on as a DOT consultant.
There was evidence of deleted videos and files. Atalah claimed the file, “Conversations.doc,” was “erotic literature” and said he “might sometimes copy erotic stories from the Internet.” He said “I don’t do anything that is illegal… . I don’t consider this illegal. … For me, it’s just entertainment for a short period of time or entertainment for whatever.” He also wrote an email to Ohio’s Inspector General claiming he is “not that kind of a person who would do anything awful like that.”
Bowling Green temporarily suspended Atalah with pay for misusing state property and violating university policy.
Villanova University
(34) Christopher Haas, 60-year-old Professor of History Villanova University,
was arrested, March 2016, and charged with 415 child sexual exploitation related charges — these Delaware County charges were later dropped in lieu of federal sentencing.
In September 2016, Haas pleaded guilty to one count of accessing the internet with the intent to view child-exploitation images and was sentenced in December 2016, to 1.6 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release. Haas died of suicide, 28 January 2017, two day prior to starting his prison sentence.
Haas was caught by university IT staff using a Villanova computer to search for child rape. At the time of his arrest he had more than 400 images of child sexual exploitation on his computer. Haas had been under Homeland Security investigation in 2012 for child pornography crimes on his home computer. It is not clear why he was not arrested in 2012. Upon Haas’ arrest Villanova released the following statement: “The university is horrified by the behavior of this individual and has relieved the faculty member of his teaching duties. He is not permitted to return to campus. The university has an unwavering commitment to a safe campus for all community members, and illegal, offensive and dangerous behaviors will not be tolerated.” Haas had been employed at Villanova for 28 years.
(35) Timothy O’Connell, 51-year-old Associate Director Campus Ministry for Latino Outreach, Villanova University,
was arrested, July 2018, on child pornography charges.
He pleaded, 11 June 2019, guilty to one receipt count and was sentenced, 21 November 2019, to 6.5 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release and $10,000 in special assessments and fines.
O’Connell was using Kik “to communicate with others about the exploitation of children” including images of an 18-month-old toddler of whom O’Connell said “she is cute,” “very hot,” “very nice,” and “get me hard.” O’Connell was trading in child rape images in his campus office and at home. He also told law enforcement he was “sexually attracted to a third grader he once babysat.” Upon news of the arrest, Villanova suspended O’Connell and barred him from campus and later terminated him.
(36) John Patrick Shannon, 44-year-old Dean, Levin College of Law, University of Florida, was
arrested, in 2006, on child sex abuse related charges. Shannon pleaded no contest and was sentenced, November 2007, on two counts of child abuse (with no sex) to house arrest for two years and eight years of probation. Shannon was ordered to forfeit his law license but not required to register as a sex offender.
He was caught by police “engaging in Internet chat or online messaging where he encouraged another person to engage in the exploitation of a child” and offered advice about how to drug children for rape. Local media reported his arrest was part of a child sex abuse/trafficking ring. The university allowed Shannon to resign, July 2006, after law enforcement searched his home.
Ball State University
(37) Melvin Lee Sharpe, 78-year-old Professor Emeritus, Ball State University,
was arrested, 11 March 2015, on two charges, one each, of child molestation and solicitation relating to the abuse of a seven-year-old boy over a five year period starting in 2006, when Sharpe was full-time faculty at Ball State. In a deal, Sharpe pleaded guilty, February 2018, to one felony count of battery resulting in bodily injury and was sentenced, 5 April 2018, to 1.5 years probation with no jail time. He is not required to registered as a sex offender.
In 2016, a woman also said “was subjected to “sexual, physical and emotional abuse” by Sharpe from the age of four-years-old and continuing for almost a decade. Ball State awarded Sharpe more than 30 honors. He remains in Ball State’s Journalism Hall of Fame and is listed as an emeritus professor. The Dean of the College of Communication, Information and Media, Roger Lavery, reportedly said Sharpe’s legacy would “not be tarnished.” Sharpe had been free on $35,000 bond pending trial.
Several other Ball State University employees have been arrested on similar charges. In 2016, Brian Siebenaler, Randal Ray Schmidt, Robert Yadon and Brian Koby (involved with a student club and not employed directly by Ball State) were arrested on child sex abuse related charges. In October 2018, residence hall director Braden Robinson was arrested on child pornography charges that included the rape of a 4-year-old girl.
(38) Brian Kenneth Siebenaler, 49-year-old Math Professor, Ball State University,
was arrested, 13 May 2016, on 22 counts of child pornography possession and 14 counts of child exploitation.
He was convicted, 2 April 2018, on eight possession and exploitation counts and sentenced, 30 May 2018, to four years per five counts of probation (concurrent) and two years jail time per 3 counts entirely suspended, i.e., no jail time. In April 2019 the appeals court reversed three counts.
Siebenaler had been trading in child sexual abuse on university computers. In addition to possessing thousands of child abuse images, including children as young as five-years-old, Siebenaler maintained a website to store and distribute the images/videos. Siebenaler was employed with Ball State since 1992, and was terminated after his arrest. He is a registered sex offender until June 2028.
(39) Robert Earl Yadon, 69-year-old Professor of Information and Communications Sciences, Ball State,
was arrested, June 2016, on ten child pornography related charges. He pleaded guilty in a deal to one charge on July 2017 and was sentenced, 10 April 2018, to a suspended sentence of two years in jail (i.e., no jail time) and two years probation.
Yadon was trafficking in child sex abuse from university computers, including children as young as eight-years-old. Yadon had been employed with Ball State since 1987, and said he had been trading in child sex abuse images for at least three years. His employment with Ball State was terminated after his arrest. He must register as a sex offender until April 2028.
University of North Carolina
(40) Robert Lewis Herman-Smith, 55-year-old Assistant Professor, Department of Social Work
University of North Carolina (UNC) Charlotte, was arrested, 27 October 2017, and charged with six counts of child exploitation. Smith was indicted, August 2018, on five charges. On 21 October 2018 Smith died. Due his death, the court dismissed the case on 19 November 2018. He had been free on bond prior to his death.
Herman-Smith was UNC’s Coordinator of North Carolina Child Welfare Education Collaboration which “prepares and trains students for practice in public child welfare.” He researched “early childhood intervention for young children at risk for developmental problems due to trauma, maltreatment, and poverty” and had access to newborns to five-year-old children via his work with the North Carolina Child Welfare Education Collaboration. UNC suspended Herman-Smith with pay upon news of his arrest and then allowed Herman-Smith to resign. He had been employed at UNC since 2008.
(41) Gilbert Kenneth Sams, 73-year-old Archaeology Professor and Classics Department Chair
University of North Carolina (UNC) was arrested and charged, 28 February 2017, with ten felony of second-degree exploitation of a minor.
UNC terminated Sams upon his arrest.
As of 17 September, 2018, Sam was listed as deceased.
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(42) Kuo Hsiung Yang, 33-year-old Research Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina
(UNC), Eshelman School of Pharmacy, was arrested, 12 November 2015, on 10 state-level charges of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. He was arrested and indicted, 26 April 2016, on federal child pornography charges of two counts, one per, of possession and receipt.
In a deal, Yang pleaded guilty, 7 June 2016, to one count of receipt and was sentenced, 15 September 2016, to 9.16 years in federal prison followed by 20 years of supervised release. He was in custody on $500,000 bond throughout the legal process.
Yang was a member of “Play Pen” an on-line child sex trafficking site which the FBI seized in 2015. He was trading in Girls-HC (hard core) — brutal rape and torture of small children. Upon his arrest, Yang had more than 50,000 videos/images of child rape and torture. He had been employed at UNC since 2012. UNC declined to report how Yang’s employment was handled after his arrest. He is no longer employed at UNC. His research focused on HIV and AIDS. In addition, Yang was also secretary/treasurer of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy.
University of Cincinnati
(43) Holt N. Parker, 59-year-old Classics Professor, University of Cincinnati (UC), was arrested,
15 March 2016, on one count of distribution and receipt of child pornography as well as destruction or removal of property to prevent seizure. He pleaded guilty, 29 August 2016, to one count of possession and was free on bail pending sentencing. On 26 January 2017, he was sentenced to four years in federal prison followed by 15 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
Parker told investigators he traded child rape almost “every day” for the past five or six years. He used the email “daddy.cruel@yahoo.com” to trade in child pornography. Parker “bragged about having sex with an 8-year-old girl” and responded to the rape of a 4 year old child with “love that,” “show me,” “please!” He collected “thousands” of images/videos of child rape and torture including of an infant.
Parker’s Ph.D. is from Yale. He published on sexuality, slavery and sadism. He was allowed to resign from UC a month after his arrest.
(44) Brian T. Meadows, 76-year-old professor (retired) University of Cincinnati (UC),
was arrested, 4 November 2016, on two counts of illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material and three counts of voyeurism.
Meadows pleaded guilty to all five counts and was sentenced, 12 September 2017, to half a year in jail followed by 5 years of supervised release. Meadows was free on $115,000 bail/bond during the legal process.
Meadows set up a hidden camera in locker rooms at Cincinnati Sports Club, a health club he belonged to, and filmed women and “children in the nude” and “using the restroom.”
Meadows was employed at UC for 48 years. Although local media reported he retired in May 2016, prior to his November arrest, Meadows filed court documents, in 2018, requesting permission for international travel as a UC
faculty member.
Prior to his employment at UC, Meadows had been an Assistant Professor of Physics at Syracuse University from 1967–1972.
Brian Meadows is a registered sex offender and, apparently, remains an emeritus professor at the University of Cincinnati.
(45) Charles M. Jones, 59-year-old Department of Psychology Chair, Union College (Kentucky),
was arrested, 22 January 2017, and charged with child pornography distribution and possession and indicted, 24 February 2017, on eight counts. Jones pleaded not guilty to all counts. On 4 May 2018, all charges were dismissed by a prosecutor claiming it could not be proven, beyond a reasonable doubt, the images were of children.
Local police were notified when child sex abuse images were found on a college printer, in 2014, that Jones used — a colleague reported to campus police. IT staff worked with police and discovered hundreds CSEM images on Jones’ college computer. Jones had been at Union College for 16 years when he was arrested. He was the college advisor for Psi Chi, the psychology honor society, and involved in study abroad programs. Previously, he was a Visiting Assistant Professor at Bowling Green State University (1996/97). According to his LinkedIn profile, he is now a professor at Lindsey Wilson College, a private Methodist College in Kentucky.
College of William and Mary
(46) Michael Daniel Wilson, 46-year-old Senior Biologist, College of William and Mary,
was arrested, 19 February 2016, on four child pornography possession charges.
He pleaded guilty to all four counts on 2 November 2016 and was sentenced, 1 March 2017, to 3.4 years in jail followed by 20 years of supervised release.
Wilson had been trading CSEM for 35 year and is, at least, the second William and Mary professor arrested on similar charges.
The College placed him on leave after his arrest. He is no longer employed at William and Mary with the status of his separation unknown.
Michael Daniel Wilson is a registered sex offender in Pennsylvania.
(47) Justin Bradley May, 34-year-old Assistant Professor of Economics, William and Mary,
was arrested, 1 July 2010, on three counts of child pornography production. He pleaded guilty, on one count of production, 18 October 2010, and was sentenced, 3 February 2011, to 15 years in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release.
May was producing child pornography on his college computer at William and Mary.
May was posing as a talent agent for a “modeling company” and coerced a 13-year-old girl into producing child pornography for him. He also offered the child 300 “professional photographs” in exchange for anal sex.
The prosecuting attorney said, “It is shocking that a college professor manipulated a young girl for his own sexual gratification. This case is a wake-up call to parents and kids alike that the face of evil is often the ordinary and the familiar, including people in positions of trust.” The college placed May on administrative leave after his arrest. He is no longer employed at William and Mary and the details of his separation are not known.
(48) Kenneth Martin Kyle, 47-year-old Assistant Professor of Public Affairs and Administration
California State East Bay, was arrested on federal charges on, 15 March 2010, on one count each of child pornography possession and exploitation. Later, he was charged with statutory rape and sodomy and one count of child pornography transportation.
Kyle pleaded guilty, 8 March 2012, in federal court and was sentenced to 37.6 years in jail. In October 2013, a federal appeals court set aside Kyle’s guilty plea and on remand, 30 December 2015, Kyle pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated sexual abuse with children and was sentenced to 30 years in jail to be served concurrent with a sentence imposed in Missouri’s circuit court for the crimes he committed in Missouri.
Kyle’s on-line name was “cruelsob.” At the time of his arrest he had “hundreds” of child rape images/videos on his home computer. Kyle traveled, almost monthly, to St. Louis to rape a five-month-old baby until the infant was just over one-year-old when Kyle was caught. He produced child pornography of himself raping the baby. The infant was offered by the child’s mother, Tessa VanVlerah. St. Louis police arrested, VanVlerah, a college student, at her parents’ home in Ballwin. Kyle met VanVlerah on-line. VanVlerah carved “Lord Nikon,” (Kyle called himself) on her skin at Kyle’s request. He also choked, burned and urinated on her and requested bestiality. She was sentenced to two life sentences in prison.
California State East Bay allowed Kyle to resign. Previously, (1998–2007) he was an Associate Sociology Professor at Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg’s School of Behavioral Science and Education, teaching behavioral sciences and women’s studies. Kyle was the Chair of the Educational Problems and Juvenile Delinquency division of the Society for the Study of Social Problems.
(49) Adam C. Cobb, 48-year-old Director of the Mahan Advanced Research Project, Naval War
College, was arrested, 3 April 2015, on two counts, one per, of child pornography receipt and distribution. He pleaded guilty, 24 February 2016, and was sentenced, 13 February 2017, to five years in federal jail followed by 10 years of supervised release and a $25,000 fine. He must register as a sex offender.
Cobb was caught uploading CSEM to Tumblr. His on-line name was “ddlg-obey-daddy” and “Daddy Mike 69.” Cobb sexually abused several children and produced CSEM of the abuse. He told a 16-year-old girl he wanted to anal rape her and hurt her, saying “Daddy wants to see your teen tears.”
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND
Cobb violated terms of his pretrial release by contacting one of the child victims and obtaining unauthorized electronic devices. The court revoked his $1,000,000 surety bond release at that time and he was held in custody until his sentencing. He is no longer employed at the Naval War College.
(50) Robert S. Berardo, 56-year-old Adjunct Instructor, Department of History & Social Sciences
Middlesex County Community College, was arrested, 1 September 2016, and charged with one count each of endangering a child due to possession and intent to distribute child pornography.
Berardo pleaded not guilty and was indicted, 25 June 2018, on all three counts. In a deal he changed his plea to guilty to one charge of distribution with the other charges dismissed. He was sentenced, 22 March 2019, to three years in jail, with no supervised release, $2,305 in fines and $1,000 to a Sex Crimes Victims Treatment Fund. Bearardo had been held on $10,000 bail. He must register as a sex offender.
One thumb drive, alone, in Berardo’s possession, at the time of arrest, had an estimated 7,000 CSEM with folders organized with a children’s age, name and locations.
Berardo coached girls softball (2001–2009), including the travel team, and was a resilience and recovery coordinator at AmeriCorps VISTA. He was active in New Jersey Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NJVOAD) and worked in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in the utilities industry He was GIS Coordinator for Monmouth County, New Jersey where he had influence/reported on the development/methodology of registering sex offenders under Megan’s Law.
After May 2016 Berardo was no longer employed at Middlesex. Previously, he had also been employed at Brookdale Community College (where his wife is also employed) Raritan Valley College and Monmouth University.
(51) John Martin Favor, 49-year-old African-American Studies Chair, Dartmouth College,
was arrested, 3 September 2015, on five felony child pornography charges. All state charges were dropped in a deal when Favor pleaded guilty, 31 March 2016, to one federal count child pornography possession and was sentenced, 11 July 2016, to five and half years in federal prison followed by six/seven years of supervised release.
Upon his arrest he had more than 500 videos and 300 images of child rape, including of infants and toddlers. His user name on Tumblr, where he was trading in child rape, was “lustyjourney.” Favor said he had been trading in child rape for 15 years.
After his arrest, Favor remained on faculty and paid leave (although prohibited from campus) until his sentencing when he resigned. Favor’s husband, Michael Blumenauer, was Associate Registrar for Curriculum and Graduation at Dartmouth from 2012 until March 2016. Favor’s mother had been Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Bridgewater State College and Chancellor at University of Wisconsin-River Falls.
University of Virginia
(52) Walter Francis Korte Jr., 72-year-old Chair Film Department, University of Virginia, was arrested,
2 August 2016, by university police, on two counts of child pornography possession and indicted, 5 December 2016, on both counts.
He pleaded guilty January 2018 and on, 2 October 2018, was sentenced to five years in jail with all but one year suspended and, as of March 2019, Korte was allowed to complete his jail sentence under house arrest.
Korte was caught by campus police when he printed CSEM images on university computer/printers and disposed of these in a trash can near his campus office. UVA placed Korte on leave upon his arrest and he resigned in November 2016.
Korte is a registered sex offender.
(53) Michael G. Morris, 50-year-old Assistant Dean, University of Virginia (UVA)
was arrested, 6 November 2013, on child pornography charges and indicted on two counts of distributing/receiving child pornography and one count of possession.
Morris pleaded guilty to all three charges on 21 April 2014 and was sentenced, 14 July 2014, to 8.8 years in federal jail and 20 years supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Morris was an “ultimate” member of Gigatribe — a peer-to-peer (P2P) program he used to trade pre-teen hard core (PTHC). His on-line name was “funshooter2006.” At the time of his arrest he had some 4,000 images/videos of child sex abuse including of toddlers and used his UVA email address when making a payment to, at least, one P2P CSEM account.
Morris also posed, for at least five years, as a teenage boy or girl, and enticed 14 to 16 year old girls to perform sex acts for him live-streamed and had been trading in CSEM for 15 years. While he was was under investigation he accessed, more than 192 times, child sex abuse from his home and UVA computer. UVA suspended Morris, after his arrest and he later resigned. While at UVA he also led student trips to Asia and Europe. He was an expert in information technology and an Air Force veteran with a master’s degree from the Air Force Institute of Technology.
Michigan State University
(54) Lawrence Gerard Nassar, 53-year-old Associate Medical Professor Michigan State University (MSU)
and USA Gymnastics doctor, was arrested, 16 December 2016, on two federal counts of receipt/attempted receipt of child pornography and one count child pornography possession.
He was sentenced, 7 December 2017, to sixty years in federal prison, followed by a life-time of supervised release, to be served consecutively with state charges in Ingham and Eaton counties, on a total of 10 child sex assault charges — to which he plead guilty. Ingham County sentencing included victim-impact statements from 156 survivors and sentenced Nassar to 40 to 175 years in state prison. In Eaton County Nassar was sentenced on three counts of criminal sexual conduct with a six-year-old child to an additional 40 to 175 years in state prison on 24 January 2018. Nassar was held in federal custody throughout the legal process. He must register as a sex offender. Nassar’s federal appeal was denied on 22 August 2018.
Upon his arrest, Nassar had, at least, 37,000 CSEM images/videos including PTHC and “sexually abused hundreds of women and girls over more than 20 years, many of them at his MSU office. For decades, MSU employees ignored reports of sexual abuse and attempted to prevent victims from coming forward. MSU, ultimately, terminated Nassar. Three MSU employees were charged and two were sentenced for their role in covering-up Nassar’s crimes.
Kathie Klages, MSU gymnastics coach, was convicted, 14 February 2020, of two counts of lying to law enforcement about Nassar’s crimes. She was sentenced, 4 August 2020, to 3 months (90 days) in jail followed by 1.5 years of probation. She is no longer employed at MSU.
William Strampel, MSU Dean at the College of Osteopathic Medicine and Nassar’s direct supervisor, was sentenced, 7 August 2019, to 11 months for one felony misconduct in office charge and one year each for two misdemeanor willful neglect of duty charges to be served concurrently. A jury found Strampel guilty of all three charges. He is no longer employed at MUS.
Lou Anna K. Simon, MSU president, was charged, 20 November 2018, with four counts of lying to law enforcement investigators about Nassar’s crimes. In May 2020, a judge dismissed all charges. She was forced to resign 24 January 2018, as a result of her handling of the Nassar case.
The State of Michigan has revoked Nassar’s medical license. Michigan’s Attorney General opened, January 2018, an investigation into MSU’s conduct and MSU agreed, May 2018, to settle suits with hundreds of victims for $500 million. In 2019, the US Department of Education fined MSU $4.5 million for failure to protect students. As of August 2020, the Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General (IG) is examining the FBI’s failure to investigate Nassar’s abuse in a timely manner. In June 2020, over 120 survivors called for DOJ’s IG report to be released.
Saginaw Valley State University
(55) Jason John Kahler, 41-year-old Assistant Professor of English Saginaw Valley State University,
was arrested, 16 August 2016, on one child pornography possession charge. He was indicted, 9 August 2016, on the charge and pleaded guilty 17 March 2017, to the charge. Kahler was sentenced, 9 August 2017, to 3.4 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release.
Kahler was caught in Operation Pacifier when FBI seized control of Playpen — a child trafficking site -including infant rape.
Kahler was free on $20,000 bond pending sentencing. The university suspended Kahler without pay immediately upon his arrest. He is no longer employed at the university. Previously he had been employed at Teacher’s Discovery, a children’s textbook company calling itself “Walt Disney of teaching aids.” Kahler is a registered sex offender in Michigan. He served his prison term and currently works for a comic book company.
(56) Robert James Thaler, 71-year-old Assistant Professor Sociology Saginaw Valley State
University, was arrested and charged, June 2013, with nine counts of child pornography possession. In a deal, Thaler pleaded guilty to one count of possession with other charges dropped. He was sentenced, 24 February 2014, to five years probation with no jail time. Thaler had been free on $18,000 bond pending sentencing. Thaler is a registered sex offender.
Thaler used university computers to trade in child rape and was caught by SVSU in 2012. University officials reported Thaler’s CSEM activity to local prosecutors and sent Thaler’s work computer to the FBI. The university placed Thaler on unpaid suspension, banned him from campus and released a detailed statement. His plea deal included a stipulation that he resign his university position. Thaler had been a professor at SVSU since 1974.
University of Alabama
(57) Massimiliano (Max) Bonamente, 46-year-old Professor of Physics, University of Alabama,
was arrested, 10 February 2017, and charged with two counts of sexual abuse of a child under 12 years old. Bonamente was held on a $60,000 bond. The charges were later dropped. Bonamente remains a professor, teaching, at University of Alabama.
(58) Nikos Alexander Pappas, 41-year-old Assistant Professor of Music, University of Alabama,
was arrested, 23 May 2017, on two federal possession and receipt child pornography charges.
He pleaded guilty, 20 July 2017, to both counts and was sentenced, 30 November 2017, to six years in federal prison followed by lifetime supervised release.
Pappas was trading CSEM on his university computer. At the time of his arrest he possessed hundreds of images/videos. The university placed Pappas on leave, 22 September 2016, and terminated him on 15 May 2017. Pappas’ Ph.D. is from the University of Kentucky.
(59) Alyssa Azotea, 37-year-old Adjunct Professor Psychology, Simmons College,
was arrested, 28 August 2015, on four counts of child pornography and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Charges were later dropped and the case was closed on 12 November 2015.
She, and her boyfriend, discussed raping a five-year-old child. She told her boyfriend “he should allow himself to become aroused by young girls that he sees in public and that he should then report back to her.”
Simmons College states: “Ms. Azotea was hired as an adjunct professor; like all adjunct instructors at Simmons, she was hired to teach a particular course in a particular semester without promise of future employment. She was not a full-time regular staff or faculty member. Simmons placed Ms. Azotea on a paid leave upon learning of her arrest; she did not return to Simmons that semester; she was replaced by another instructor in that course; and she has not been employed by Simmons since.”
Prior to her arrest, she worked/volunteered for New Hampshire Children’s Trust Fund. She is one, of two, people listed with New Hampshire Congress of Parents and Teachers; a non-profit with revoked IRS tax exempt status for failure to file. She has been employed with Franklin Pierce University, North Shore Community College, and listed, at New England College, teaching a course on “Human Sexuality” (2017–2018).
University of North Texas
(60) James Francis Quinn, 59-year-old Professor of Criminology, University of North Texas (UNT),
was arrested, 5 May 2014, on nine child pornography counts. He was indicted, on all nine counts, 24 July 2015, pleaded guilty to all nine charges and was sentenced, on 17 November 2016, to four years in jail and a lifetime on the sex offender registry. He was free on $10,000 bond during the legal process.
Since 1999, Quinn was also Director of the Addictions Program in the Department of Rehabilitation, Social Work and Addictions. His research focused on the “One-Percenter Culture,” on-line child sex trafficking and motorcycle clubs including: (1) Red Light Districts on Blue Screens: A Typology for Understanding the Evolution of Deviant Communities on the Internet; (2) Societal reaction to sex offenders: A review of the origins and results of the myths surrounding their crimes and treatment amenability; (3) Sex roles and hedonism among members of “outlaw” motorcycle clubs.
Quinn resigned from UNT on 4 June 2015 after his May arrest. He had been employed at UNT since 1998. Prior to, he was employed at Louisiana State University (1983- 1987).
(61) Alan Philip Marchand, Regents Professor of Chemistry University of North Texas (UNT),
was arrested on campus on child pornography charges in 2003. Marchand pleaded guilty, August 2004, to four counts of possession and was sentenced, to six years of probation with no jail time, 250 hours of community service, a $2,500 fine and must register as a sex offender.
Marchand had been using his university computer to trade in CSEM. UNT placed Marchand on paid leave after his arrest and he later resigned. He appears to be offering tutoring services to children on-line via takelessons.com/profile/dr-alan-m#reviews. He is listed as a registered sex offender in Texas.
(62) Kevin M. Sullivan, a 60-year-old Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Emory University,
was arrested, 15 June 2015, on child pornography charges. He was indicted, 5 August 2015, and pleaded guilty, 1 December 2016, to one count of receipt. He was sentenced, 1 March 2017, to six years in jail followed by seven years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $15,000 fine. He must register as a sex offender.
Sullivan was trading in child rape, including children as young as four-years-old, and children being raped, bound and sadistically abused on university networks. At the time of his arrest, he had over 11,000 images/videos of child rape. Emory University’s Information Technology Department assisted law enforcement in the investigation.
Sullivan had been employed at Emory University since 1991, and also employed, since 1987, at the Center for Disease Control (CDC). His work included a focus on vulnerable children in the developing world and autism. In addition, he volunteered for “Songs for Kids,” humanitarian relief organizations like CARE and raised money for orphanages. His wife, Enid L. Sullivan, is employed at Emory as a Senior Administrative Assistant.
University of Michigan
(63) Clifford Raymond Bingham, 56-year-old, research professor, University of Michigan (UM),
was arrested, 2 October 2017, on three child pornography possession charges and one charge of using a computer to commit a crime. In a deal, Bingham pleaded guilty, 28 November 2017, to one count of possession with the other charges were dropped and was sentenced, 13 February 2018, to 90 days in jail and five years probation.
Bingham had been trading in, what prosecutors called “terrifying” child rape on his university computer including of children as young as two-years-old. He was suspended from the university, January 2017, when Department of Homeland Security and University of Michigan Police conducted a search at his university office, and resigned 15 September 2017. Bingham was employed with University of Michigan since 1998. His research examined adolescent development, including youth driving and alcohol use. He is now a registered sex offender.
(64) Mark Franklin Hoeltzel, 46-year-old Associate Professor Pediatric Rheumatology, University of
Michigan (UM) was arrested, 12 February 2018, on two federal child pornography charges and indicted on five more counts. He pleaded guilty, 13 September 2018, and was sentenced, 13 December 2018, to ten years in federal prison followed by six years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Hoeltzel was also convicted, January 2019, on two state-level counts of criminal sexual misconduct. On 25 February 2019, the Washtenaw County Trial Court ordered Hoeltzel to pay $10,000 to one victim. He was sentenced to 5-15 years in state prison for the second-degree charge and, concurrently, 13 months to two years for the fourth-degree charge. State sentencing is to be serve concurrent with federal.
UM allowed Hoeltzel to resign, 12 January 2018, “in lieu of dismissal” after state licensing authorities investigated his sexual abuse and exploitation of a teenage patient who had a mental health disorder. Hoeltzel provided pain medication in exchange for sex and alcohol with this teenage patient. In 2004, Hoeltzel groomed an 11-year-old girl attending the UM Arthritis Camp Dakota. Hoeltzel told her she had “pretty long legs,” invited her for ice cream and conducted a two-year long abusive and exploitative “cyber relationship” with her. UM was aware of this conduct but did not alert authorities and kept Hoeltzel employed. Hoeltzel subsequently groomed, at least, three other girls using a fake Facebook account pretending to be a teenage boy.
Prior to his employment at UM, beginning in 2013, Hoeltzel worked at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri from 2007. The State of Michigan has revoked his medical license. At the time of his arrest, Hoeltzel was also a father of three children under the age of six-years-old.
(65) James Daniel Cavalcoli, 51-year-old Assistant Professor of Bioinformatics, University of Michigan
(UM), was arrested, 7 August 2015, attempting to meet a father trafficking his 13-year-old son — in reality undercover law enforcement.
Cavalcoli pleaded guilty, 13 January 2016, and was sentenced, 30 March 2016, to ten years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
Cavalcoli traveled from Michigan to Florida with the intention of raping a child and discussed this in detail with the undercover officer posing as a father trafficking his child. Cavalcoli had posted, at least twice, requests to meet fathers trafficking their children on travel to Indiana and Ireland.
UM placed Cavalcoli on an unpaid leave and terminated him upon sentencing.
(66) Stephen Douglas Jenson, pediatric oncologist resident, University of Michigan (UM), was
arrested, 16 December 2011, by UM police and charged with four child pornography counts in Washtenaw County, Michigan. On 14 February 2012, two federal child pornography receipt and possession were added.
In a deal, 13 September 2012, all local and one federal receipt charges were dropped. Jenson was sentenced, 21 March 2013, on one possession count to three years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release. He was released from federal prison on 28 April 2015, and applied for early release of supervised release, after 3.5 years, which was granted on 7 December 2018. He is a registered sex offender in Utah.
In 2011, Jenson left his thumb drive in a computer in UM’s Pediatric Emergency Department where he was a resident. A female resident found, 23 May 2011, the memory stick which contained images of a child, aged 5–10 years old, bound and being raped.
The female resident reported to university supervisors. UM lawyers said her “concerns” were “unfounded” declined to alert law enforcement. University administrators then acted to silence the reporting female resident. Six months later the incident was “re-reported” and campus police were notified. Campus police notified state and federal law enforcement. Jenson continued to have access to children in the pediatric unit during this delay. UM terminated Jenson on 16 December 2011.
Lee Higgins of The Ann Arbor News broke the story that “university officials waited 6 months” before reporting Jenson’s workplace crimes to law enforcement. The Ann Arbor News’ extensive reporting prompted: (1) an internal university review — released in February 2012; (2) a Board of Regents external review, and (3) a federal Department of Education review.
(67) James Lesner Query, Jr., 55-year-old Director Institute for Health and Environmental Communications, James Madison University (JMU),
was arrested, 22 April 2010, on child pornography charges. He was indicted, 18 November 2010, on possession and distribution — one count each.
In a deal, Query pleaded guilty 3 August 2011, to one count of distribution and was sentenced, 19 July 2011, to 11.25 years in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Query was placed on leave without pay in September 2010 and later terminated. Prior to, Query was an Associate Professor of Communication at the University of Houston with a joint appointment at University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Neuro-Oncology. He had also been employed at Indiana University School of Nursing, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), the Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Ohio University, Ohio University East, University of Tulsa, and Loyola University Chicago. From 1998–2002, Query was a Contributing Editor for the Journal of Health Communication: International Perspectives and served on two editorial boards and was an Editor of Communication Studies.
University of North Dakota
(68) Robert William Beattie, 55-year-old Family and Community Medicine Department Chair,
University of North Dakota, was arrested on campus, 6 August 2015, on ten child pornography possession state charges. On 22 August 2015, Beattie was federally charged on one count distribution/receipt and two possession counts. Beattie was indicted, 19 August 2015, on all federal charges. State charges were dismissed in lieu of federal charges.
In a deal, Beattie pleaded guilty, 28 March 2016, to two federal charges — one count per possession and distribution — and was sentenced, 12 July 2016, to 12 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release. He must register a sex offender. He was also ordered to pay $200 special assessment to the Crime Victims’ Fund, $5,000 special assessment in Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act and $10,000 in victim restitution. Beattie was free on state-level bond, $25,000, throughout the legal process.
Beattie was trading in CSEM from his university computer in his campus office and at his home. At the time of his arrest he had 3,233 images and 100 videos of child rape and torture including of infants and toddlers. The prosecutor said, “These images are… really horrific acts.” Beattie also sent “non-pornographic” pictures of his grandchildren to “individuals with sexual interest in children” in chat rooms about incest.
The university placed Beattie on paid leave and later terminated his employment. Beattie was hired by UND in 2006. In 2014, his public salary was listed as $330,086. Previously, Beattie was head of the family medicine and obstetrics-gynecology services and chief of staff at West River Regional Medical Center in Hettinger, North Dakota. He has also been president of the North Dakota Medical Association. Immediately after his arrest, August 2015, North Dakota Board of Medical Examiners’ suspended his medical license.
(69) Eric Hewitt Basile, 37-year-old Assistant Professor of Aviation, University of North Dakota
was arrested, 8 September 2016, on eight state child pornography charges. State charges were later dropped in lieu of one receipt/distribution and three possession fedreal charges.
Basile was sentenced, 5 September 2017, to 16.5 years in federal prison followed by 15 years of supervised release and a fine of $24,000 to the Crime Victims’ Fund. He must register as a sex offender.
UND students reported inappropriate behavior by Basile to university police who, in turn, seized Basile’s work computer which contained the violent rape of children between the ages of one and three-years-old. Basile was arrested by university police and UND immediately issued a statement detailing Basile’s on-campus arrest and placed him on administrative leave. He was later terminated. Basile had been employed with UND since 2014. He was a Visiting Assistant Instructor at Southern Illinois University (Carbondale) (2000–2002) and a private corporate pilot (2003–2014). UND awarded Basile the 2015 Aviation Faculty Member of the Year.
(70) Richard J. Keller, 56-year-old Adjunct Instructor, Harvard University’s Medical School &
Adjunct Faculty at Boston Children’s Hospital — the teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School — was arrested, 13 September 2012, on three child pornography charges.
Keller was indicted, 11 December 2012, on two receipt and one possession counts and pleaded guilty, 5 November 2013, to all three counts. He was sentenced, 12 March 2014, to 6.5 years in federal prison followed by 5.5 years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital suspended Keller upon news of his arrest. The state of New Hampshire suspended his medical license on 20 September 2012. Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine asked Keller, also in 2012, to voluntarily withdraw his license.
Keller had been Medical Director at Phillips Academy for 19 years, teaching sex education, before resigning in 2011 — the year prior his arrest. At Phillips he: used a school computer to access adult pornography; was reprimanded for sharing an “inappropriate cartoon” with students; put on administrative probation for “poor management and poor judgment;” sent an “inappropriate voice-mail” to a colleague; and had over 100 DVDs of child pornography sent to his workplace address.
Keller had been involved, for years, with two residential summer camps — Camp Joslin, for diabetic children, and Camp Mah-Kee-Nac in the Berkshires. His research included a focus on “Children and Adolescents With Eating Disorders.” Keller completed his residency at Yale New Haven Children’s Center. He told investigators he had been “sexually interested” in children since the 1970s and had been involved with child pornography for years. At the time of his arrest, he was also the father of a toddler.
Ohio State University
(71) Christopher Edward Pelloski, 42-year-old Director of Pediatric Radiation Oncology,
Ohio State University (OSU) and joint appointment with Nationwide Children’s Hospital, was arrested, 16 July 2013, on one count of child pornography receipt. He pleaded guilty, 15 November 2013 and was sentenced, 11 July 2014, to one year in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release and lifetime on a sex offender registry.
Pelloski was trading in child rape on his university computer, including of a six-year-old-girl and a “girl no older than 12 being anally raped by an adult man.” Pelloski told investigators he been trading in child rape and torture for, at least, ten years.
OSU released a statement immediately after his arrest: “These types of allegations are wholly inconsistent with our institutional values, and we are deeply disturbed to learn of the allegations against Christopher Pelloski. Upon learning of the investigation, we immediately severed Dr. Pelloski’s access to all medical center facilities, patient records, email and hospital computer networks. He has resigned from his position at the medical center, effective July 24, 2013. Continuity of care for our patients is important to us. We are contacting each of Dr. Pelloski’s active patients and assigning other radiation oncology experts to care for them. Since this is a law enforcement matter under active investigation, we are not at liberty to comment further.”
The state of Ohio suspended Pelloski’s medical license in August 2013 and permantly revoked it in March 2016. Prior to his employment at OSU, Pelloski was on faculty at the University of Texas — MD Anderson Cancer Center. He is now a registered sex offender in Kentucky. At the time of his arrest, he was a father of five-year-old twins.
There have been several other high profile cases of related crimes by OSU employees including by the late Richard Strauss and Nathan Charles Fassnacht, child care staffer, detailed in the Staff Section.
(72) David Harold Scanlan III, 38-year-old pediatric oncologist, Pennsylvania State University
(Penn State) Hershey Children’s Hospital, was investigated and charged, July 2011, on one count of child pornography distribution.
In a deal, Scanlan pleaded guilty, 12 February 2014, and was sentenced, 2 September 2014, to five years in federal prison followed by 20 years supervised released and $20,000 in victim restitution.
Upon Scanlan’s arrest, investigators recovered two laptops and seven external hard drives with “a lot of child pornography images.” State Police said, “When I say a lot, we’re talking a very substantial amount” with children as young as ten-years-old. Penn State placed Scanlan on leave after his arrest. He also surrendered his medical license. Scanlan was free, pending sentencing, under electronic monitoring in his Virginia home. He is a registered sex offender.
(73) Bradley Robbert, 41-year-old Adjunct Professor Tulane University,
was arrested, 15 October 2014, on 51 child pornography charges and one charge of cocaine possession.
In a deal, Robbert pleaded guilty, 30 November 2016, to possession of cocaine and two counts of indecent behavior with juveniles with all other charges dropped and was sentenced, 30 November 2016, to a seven year suspended jail sentence, seven years of probation and sex offender registry for 25 years.
Robbert was trading in CSEM of children as young as five-years-old. He had been director of the Tulane University Shakespeare Festival from 2001 to 2009. Through his employment he had access to “several thousand middle and high school students” attending Tulane Shakespeare Festival.
George Mason University
(74) Alan Clyde More, 76-year-old Adjunct Professor and Employer in Residence, George Mason
University (GMU) was arrested and charged, 3 October 2014, on 10 child pornography possession counts.
He pleaded guilty to all 10 counts and was sentenced, 31 July 2015, to 5 years in jail (with 3.8 years suspended) followed by five years of supervised release and registry as a sex offender.
More had been trading in CSEM from university computers and was caught on campus by university police. He is a retired Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer and taught Introduction to The Intelligence Community at GMU in 2012. He was also an Employer in Residence for GMU’s Career Service Staff. More is no longer employed at GMU. He is a registered sex offender in Virginia.
(75) Joshua Jesse Robert Gessler, 41-year-old Adjunct Professor George Mason University
was arrested, 9 August 2010, on one count of child pornography production and five counts of possession. On 16 September 2010, he was arrested again and charged with an additional ten related counts. He was indicted, 28 March 2011, on five counts.
In a deal, Gessler pleaded guilty to seven counts, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, at the state level, on five possession charges, 27 May 2011, to three months in jail followed by two years of probation and a $1,000 fine to a victim restitution fund.
Gessler purchased on-line (for $300 dollars) a run-away 15-year-old girl. He raped and abused her, including sadomasochism, in the woods and produced CSEM of this abuse which he traded on-line. Gessler was caught when the child’s mother notified police her daughter was missing and in danger. Police accessed the child’s email account and located communication with Gessler.
Gessler was also an with attorney with a prestigious Washington DC law firm — Arnold and Porter. The Commonwealth of Virginia revoked Gessler’s law license 21 June 2012 and disbarred in the District of Columbia 28 November 2012. He is a registered sex offender in Virginia. He is no longer employed at GMU.
(76) Diego Fasolini, 42-year-old Professor of Italian Language, George Washington University (GWU)
was arrested, 28 October 2010, on two federal child pornography possession charges. He pleaded guilty, 13 April 2011, to one possession count and was sentenced, 1 July 2011, to 3.6 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release.
Faolini was caught by GWU’s IT staff. At the time of his arrest he over 100,000 images/videos of child rape including children as young as three-years-old and young children duct-taped and bound.
GWU suspended Fasolini upon his arrest and later terminated him. He was, at the time of his arrest, also an adjunct professor at George Mason University (GMU) in Virginia. GMU dismissed Fasolini immediately after his arrest. He had been a Visiting Professor at the University of Miami in Florida (2008–09) and a Lecturer at Gettysburg College. Fasolini was sued by the mother of one of the children whose father abused them and traded images/videos of their rape which Fasolini also traded.
(77) Noel D. Campbell, 45-year-old Professor of Economics, University of Central Arkansas (UCA),
was arrested, April 2015, on 361 state-level child pornography charges.
In a deal, 7 August 2017, Campbell pleaded guilty to 13 distribution, possession or viewing charges and no contest to an additional 213 counts with 84 counts dropped. Campbell was sentenced, 31 August 2017, to 75 years in state jail.
Campbell was trading in CSEM campus and his home. He was caught by an IT employee who alerted campus police. Campbell was arrested on campus. Campbell had been employed at UCA since 2006. The university placed him on paid leave immediately after his arrest and two weeks later he resigned. He was the founding editor of the Journal of Entrepreneurship & Public Policy and won Journal of Private Enterprise Best Paper Award in 2008. Prior to UCA, he was employed at North Georgia College & State University (1998–2006) and Gordon College (1997–1998).
(78) Gary S. Spring, 61-year-old Civil Engineering Department Chair, Merrimack College
was arrested, 19 September 2014, and charged with one federal child pornography possession charge.
He was indicted, 16 October 2014, on this charge and pleaded guilty, 10 September 2015, and was sentenced, January 2016, to two years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release and 400 hours of community service. Spring was free on $30,000 bail pending sentencing.
Spring was the administrator for a federally-funded residential children’s summer camp at Merrimack College.
He was caught at the summer camp when IT staff discovered he was using his work computer and wi-fi networks to trade in child sex abuse. During a 16-day period he accessed at least 300 CSEM images. IT staff notified campus security and, in turn, local and federal investigators were notified. Merrimack terminated Spring’s employment on the same day he was arrested by federal investigators. He had been employed at Merrimack since 2003.
(79) Christopher Steven Haynes, 64-year-old Geography Lecturer, Humboldt State University,
was arrested, 29 August 2014, on four child pornography counts. He pleaded guilty, 8 January 2015, to one possession count with the other charges dismissed and was sentenced, 24 February 2015, to 90 days in jail and three years probation. He posted $100,000 bail and was free pending sentencing.
Haynes was caught when a local web-hosting company noticed CSEM on their servers and contacted Homeland Security. At the time of his arrest, Haynes possessed “thousands” of CSEM images/videos.
Haynes was retired from full-time employment at the university when he was arrested. Humboldt released the following statement: “Humboldt State University police have been assisting the Department of Homeland Security and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office with an investigation of Christopher Haynes, who was arrested today on charges related to child pornography. Haynes is a former geography instructor at HSU. The University will continue to cooperate with local and federal authorities as needed.” Haynes received California Geographic Society’s Outstanding Educator Award in 2007. He had been employed at HSU for decades.
Haynes is a registered sex offender in California.
(80) Micah James Maurio, 28-year-old Adjunct Music Instructor University of Southern Maine (USM),
was arrested, 5 December 2014, on dissemination of sexually explicit material of someone under the age of 12. It is not clear what/when Maurio was sentenced as Maine has not released the public court records. Maurio is currently a registered sex offender with a possession charge and ten years on the sex offender registered.
At the time of his arrest he possessed “hundreds of images of child pornography.” Maurio was released on personal recognizance and was free pending sentencing. USM suspended Maurio, without pay, “pending a decision on his continued employment with the University of Southern Maine.” It appears he is no longer employed as USM. He was, prior to his arrest, listed as a staff sergeant with the National Guard 195th Army Band. Maurio is advertising himself as a music teacher on Take Lessons https://takelessons.com/profile/micah-m5
University of Maine professors were reportedly involved in child trafficking ring, including abusing children on campus, in 2001, as reported by senior child protection staffer Cynthia Wellman. The State of Maine has steadfastly refused to open a criminal investigation of these allegations.
(81) Larry Gene Peppers, 67-year-old Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Clemson University,
was arrested, 12 February 2015, on two counts second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and four counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.
Peppers pleaded guilty and was sentenced, 2 March 2016, to 5 years suspended in state jail (i.e. no jail time) and 3 years probation. Peppers was free on $60,000 surety bond during the legal process. Peppers was trading in pre-teen hard core (PTHC) - the rape and torture of children as young as eight-years-old.
Peppers had been employed at Clemson since 1973. At the time of his arrest he was retired. As of 2019, he is still listed as an emeritus professor at Clemson University. Peppers ran a leadership program called SimSoc. His research areas included elder abuse, infant death and maternal grief due to infant mortality and/or abortion. Peppers is a registered sex offender in South Carolina.
(82) Robert Joel Rice, 55-year-old Director Strategic War Gaming (Lt. Col.) Army War College,
was arrested and charged, 4 April 2013, on 120 state-level child pornography counts. An additional 10 related charges were added later for a total of 130 counts. State charges were then dropped in lieu of federal charges made in 2014.
In federal court, Rice was convicted, 6 May 2016, on two counts — one possession and one receipt/distribution. He was sentenced on one count of receipt/distribution, with the possession charged dropped, on 28 December 2016, to 11.8 years in federal prison, 10 years of supervised release, a $5,100 fine and must register as a sex offender. In military court, he pleaded guilty, 24 October 2016, to three child pornography charges and was sentenced, to four years in military jail to be served concurrent with his federal sentence. Rice appealed both judgements. On 18 December 2018, his appeal in military court was denied.
At the time of his arrest, Rice had more than 30,000 images/videos of child sex abuse. His wife discovered his crimes and notified police. Rice had been employed at the Army War College since 2010. Upon his arrest the college continued to employ Rice and allowed him supervised access to Army computers. He was free on $100,000 bail pending sentencing.
(83) Kirk Jeffery Nesset, 57-year-old Professors of English and Creative Writing, Allegheny College,
was arrested, 1 October 2014, on one count per child pornography distribution, receipt and possession and indicted, 14 October 2014, on all counts. He pleaded guilty, 6 April 2015 and was sentenced in federal court, 8 February 2016, to 6.4 years in prison followed by ten years of supervised release and ordered to pay $78,900 in victim restitution and register as a sex offender. Nesset was free on $10,000 bond during the legal process.
Nesset was caught by an undercover federal agent and told investigators he had been involved in CSEM crimes since at least 2005. At the time of his arrest, Nesset had over 500,000 CSEM videos/images organzied in thirty folders with titles like “kidsfuck” including the torture of young children — with more than a thousand images/videos of infants and toddlers. In October 2018, Nesset settled a civil law suit for damages to the child victims in the CSEM he traded.
Allegheny College cancelled classes within 48-hours of Nesset’s arrest for “the community to meet and express concerns to administrators” and offered grief counseling for students, staff and faculty. The college president terminated out-of-state travel and returned to campus to take part in these discussions. Allegheny is the only higher education institution to have taken the compassionate approach of providing campus-wide grief counseling after a CSEM arrest of an employee.
Nesset resigned the day after his arrest. He had been employed at Allegheny since 1995 and was highly awarded. Prior to he was an assistant professor, for four years, at Whittier College.
(84) Travis Jay Brown, 45-year-old Assistant Professor Graphic Design, University of Arkansas,
was arrested 6 February 2014 on four counts of child pornography receipt and one possession count. He had been indicted 29 January 2014.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 30 April 2014, to one receipt count with the other charges dropped and was sentenced in federal court, 14 October 2014, to five years in jail followed by five years of supervised release. Pending sentencing, Brown was under house arrest, $5,000 bond and his father’s custody.
Brown’s investigation was triggered by a “tip” to the state police. Investigators found some 629 images of children, ages 10–12 years old, being sexually abused in Brown’s possession. UA terminated Brown’s employment, 10 February 2014, four days after his arrest. Brown is a registered sex offender in Pennsylvania.
This is, at least, the second arrest on similar charges of a UA employee. Please see Staff Section for details on Joseph Charles O’Neill.
Wright State University
(85) Gary Colbert Farlow, Associate Professor of Physics, Wright State University,
was arrested, 25 September 2014, on one child pornography possession count. He pleaded guilty, 22 December 2014, and was sentenced in federal court, 30 March 2015, to one day in jail, ten years supervised release and a $7,600 fine. He had been free on personal recognizance pending sentencing.
Farlow possessed over 400 CSEM images and was caught by university IT staff using his work computer to commit the crimes.
Upon his arrest, Wright State placed Farlow on paid suspension and Farlow retired May 2015. He had been employed at Wright State since 1985. Farlow is a registered sex offender in Ohio.
(86) James Kent Uphoff, 76-year-old former Dean, Teacher Education Chair & Director Professional Field Experiences, Wright State University,
was arrested, 6 August 2013, on child pornography charges. While out on bail, he was caught continuing to access CSEM images/videos and was not charged with additional crimes.
Uphoff pleaded guilty, 17 October 2013, to one possession count and was sentenced in federal court, 10 September 2014, to 1.2 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release.
Uphoff was caught when he left CSEM images on a university printer/copier which were discovered and reported to university police. Uphoff also had
CSEM on his university computer. At the time of his arrest, he had 500 CSEM images/videos including children in bondage and told investigators he had been engaged in the crime for, at least, a decade.
In 2010, Uphoff had been investigated by local police for inappropriate contact of a child at Oakwood school. He was required to “seek counseling” and allowed to continue employment/volunteer work in positions of trust and authority over vulnerable children — including for Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) (2004–2012), as Ohio’s Education Association Union President (2000) and Oakwood School Board (1989–2007).
Uphoff was hired by Wright State in 1967 and retired September 2012. In addition to being department chair, he was a Lab Director (1981–1991) and Associate Director of WSU Center for Teaching and Learning (1999–2012). He won Wright State University Outstanding Faculty Award (1997) and Dayton Association for Children’s Distinguished Community Service Award. Uphoff was a contributing writer, on the masthead, of the Oakwood Register.
Uphoff is a registered sex offender in Ohio.
(87) Jonathan Curtis Varhola, 38-year-old former Instructor of Sociology, Wright State University,
was arrested, 30 April 2019, by US Marshals in Maryland and extradited, 1 May 2019, to Ohio. Varhola had been was indicted, 14 April 2019, on five counts of rape and five counts of gross sexual imposition prior to his arrest. Varhola, allegedly, raped, over a two-year period, a child under seven-years-old in a private, at-home, daycare.
In February 2021, another child and his mother came forward, reporting the child had been raped by Varhola when he was six-years-old — bringing the total to three alleged minor victims under ten-years-old. He was indicted again, 12 February, 2021, on 14 related 14 counts. His next court date is set for 23 June 2021 and with a jury trial 19 July 2021.
Varhola’s area of research and teaching was on judicial discretion in sex offender sentencing. He presented a paper, 2013, on “perceptions of sex offenders” at the Midwest Sociological Society conference in Chicago and brought undergraduate students with him to the conference. He served as faculty advisor for the WSU Sociology Club helping students “attend and present at professional organization conferences.” Varhola received a Teaching Innovation Grant and was awarded the President’s Service Award for volunteer work in Dayton, Ohio. He had been employed at WSU from 2010 to 2017 when his position was eliminated due to budget issues.
As of June 2021, he remains in Greene County Jail with bond set at $100,000. Police are asking anyone with information to call (937) 754–3000.
(88) Richard Thaddeus Pokryfka, 70-year-old (retired) Professor of Business Administration, The Citadel,
was arrested, 12 June 2013, on three counts sexual exploitation of a minor and one count child exploitation. He was indicated, 13 August 2013, on two counts of distribution and possession and, in a deal, pleaded guilty to one possession count on 24 November 2014.
Pokryfka was sentenced, 7 December 2015 to one day time served, lifetime on supervised release and must register as a sex offender. In September 2020, he violated conditions of his supervised release and was required to attend weekly sex offender meetings.
Pokryfka sent an undercover Homeland Security agent CSEM and was trading in CSEM of children 5 -10 years old. He had been employed at The Citadel since 1975 and retired in 2007. School officials said he had no “connection with the college since his retirement.” Pokryfka is also a retired US Navy captain. He is a registered sex offender in South Carolina.
(89) Frank McCorkle Lombard, 43-year-old Associate Director Center for Health Policy, Duke University
was arrested, 24 June 2009, on child sex abuse charges. He pleaded guilty, 17 December 2009, and was sentenced, 29 March 2010, to 27.3 years in federal prison followed by a life-time of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Lombard drugged, raped and trafficked his five-year-old adopted son starting when the child was an infant. An informant tipped investigators. Lombard was then caught by a Washington DC undercover investigator to whom Lombard offered his son. Lombard bragged he raped and trafficked his own child and said it “was easier when the child was too young to talk or know what was happening.” He also used Benadryl to drug the child. Lombard had adopted two African-American children. His internet profile stated he was a “perv dad” interested in “perv fam fun.”
Duke placed Lombard on unpaid leave upon his arrest and terminated him in July 2009. Lombard had been employed at Duke since 1999. He was a licensed clinical social worker and his research focused on health-disparities and HIV/AIDS. Lombard had been involved with Genesis Home, now Families Moving Forward, a local charity provided an on-site day-care, tutoring services and emergency shelter for homeless children.
Both of Lombard’s children were taken into protective custody. Duke’s Center for Public Health is now Duke Global Health Institute.
University of Pennsylvania (UPenn)
(90) Lawrence Scott Ward, 63-year-old (former) Marketing Department Chair, Wharton School
of Business, University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), was arrested, 27 August 2006, on child pornography production and distribution charges and pleaded guilty in Virginia federal court, 17 May 2007. Ward was sentenced to 15 years and a $17,500 fine on those charges.
On 17 November 2008, he pleaded guilty, in federal court in Pennsylvania, to four counts of child pornography and sexual misconduct and one count of making false statements to a federal official and was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, lifetime supervised release and a $250,000 fine. His federal appeal was denied in 2013.
Ward was arrested at Dulles International Airport when child pornography was discovered on his laptop and in his luggage. Ward was trading in CSEM from his campus office — using his UPenn email, UPenn networks and storing images/videos of himself sexually assaulting children in Brazil. In addition, Ward used his employment at UPenn to create the Rebound Foundation for at-risk youth, which included UPenn students and faculty. Ward’s foundation was a vehicle to recruit, groom, abuse and traffic impoverished children. He hosted UPenn foreign exchange students whom he sexually abused. His research focused on television, marketing and videos of/for/targeting children as young as five-years-old. In 1993, Ward pleaded an Alford plea to attempting to promote prostitution and attempting to corrupt minors and was sentenced to probation and a fine. UPenn allowed Ward to remain employed. After his 2006 arrest, UPenn terminated Ward’s employment. He had been employed at UPenn since 1980.
Previously, he was an Assistant Professor at Harvard’s business school. While at Harvard, Ward worked at Alpha Omega House — a residential home for at-risk boys (primarily from the child welfare system) in Littleton, Massachusetts run by defrocked Catholic priest Bernard Lane accused of child sex assault of children over many years. Ward was also accussed of child sex abuse committed against children at Alpha Omega House and settled civil lawsuits with two survivors.
(91) Paul H. Mosher, 66-year-old Vice Provost & Director of Libraries University of Pennsylvania (UPenn),
was arrested, April 2003, on child pornography charges. He pleaded guilty, 15 October 2003, to charges of sexual abuse of children and unlawful use of a communication facility and was sentenced, 3 March 2004, to seven years probation, with no jail time, and a $5,000 fine. He is required to register as a sex offender for ten years.
IT staff discovered some 2,000 CSEM images/videos on Mosher’s office computer and notified university authorities who, in turn, contacted the Philadelphia Police Department. UPenn placed Mosher on administrative leave when his work computers were taken by law enforcement, 11 April 2003, and, six days later, 21 April 2003, Mosher resigned and turned himself into the Philadelphia Police.
Mosher had been employed at UPenn since 1988. He served on the board of the Association of College & Research Libraries, received the Blackwell North America Award (1983), a Fulbright-Hays Senior Research Scholar in Italy, (1971) and was a senior fellow Council on Library Resources.
(92) Antonio C. Lasaga, 48-year-old geology professor Yale University,
was arrested, 19 December 1998, on charges of sexual assault and child pornography. He was arrested, again, April 1999, for violating his federal bail.
On, 17 June 1999, he was indicted on four counts of receipt and three possession counts. Lasaga pleaded guilty, 18 February 2000, to one count each of possession and receipt and was sentencen, 13 February 2002, to 15 years in federal prison followed by three yeas of supervised release. In state court, Lasaga pleaded no contest to six related charges and was sentenced, 16 February 2002, to 20 years jail concurrent with his federal sentence.
On 23 October 1998, a Yale graduate student notified authorities Lasaga was downloading CSEM on Yale computers. Yale campus police were notified and they, in turn, contacted the FBI. At the time of his arrest, Lasaga possessed over 150,000 CSEM videos/images on his work and home computers. Prosecutors said Lasaga’s CSEM “can only be described as horrific.’’
Among these, were videos of Lasaga raping a 7-year-old boy. In 1991, Lasaga volunteered with Connecticut’s Board of Education to mentor disadvantaged youth. He abused, over five years, the child he “mentored” and produced CSEM of the crimes — including on Yale’s campus. In 2004, Lasaga was orderd to pay the survivor $16.5 million damages.
Prior to this arrest, there were at least four reports of Lasaga molesting children at swimming pools. In 1981, when Lasaga was at Penn State, he was charged with inappropriately touching two boys. The charges were, later, dropped. Shortly after, Lasaga left Penn State and moved to Yale. In 1986, Lasaga was accused of touching children at a YMCA pool in Hamden, Connecticut. Five years later, at the same pool, another parent complained Lasaga had molested her son.
Yale placed Lasaga on paid leave after his 1998 arrest until March 2001, when Lasaga’s tenure was revoked and he was terminated. Lasaga was released from prison in 2016 and is now a registered sex offender in Connecticut.
(93) Yaron Segal, 30-year-old post-doctoral researcher Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
was arrested, 28 March 2012, on two charges of traveling to engage in sex with minors and one charge of using the mail to persuade, induce, entice and coerce a minor to have sex.
Segal was held without bail awaiting sentencing and was found dead, of an apparent suicide, on 13 April 2012. Subsequently, all charges were dropped.
Segal was in chat rooms called “child slave sex” and “child rape torture brutality.” His email handle was ruthlessmale@hotmail.com. He was caught making arrangements with a mother trafficking her children. The “mother” was an undercover agent.
In a phone conversation with the “mother” Segal said he was bringing “a dildo, small vibrator for the youngest child.” Agents arrested Segal when he landed in Colorado to meet the “mother” and her children. Segal received his Ph.D. from Yale University in applied physics in 2011.
(94) Taj Alexander Mahon-Haft, 34-year-old Assistant Professor Criminal Justice, Radford University,
was arrested, March 2013, on over 110 child pornography related charges. He pleaded guilty, 19 December 2013, to 50 possession counts and, in a deal, the other charges were dropped and was sentenced in state court, to 100 years in prison with 85 years suspended resulting in a 15 years prison followed by ten years of supervised release.
Mahon-Haft continued to trade in CSEM while out on bond and was then arrested, for the third time, and held without bond.
Investigators seized Mahon-Haft’s home computer during a drug investigation and discovered some 10,000 CSEM images/videos —including of his own ten-year-old son. Mahon-Haft was also using his university computer to traffic in CSEM.
Prior to his employment at Radford, Mahon-Haft was an instructor at Washington State University where he received Joseph DeMartini Excellence in Teaching Award (2010). He was engaged to another Radford professor, Leah Gose, (not his son’s mother) at the time of his arrest. She is now a professor at Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University.
He is a registered sex offender, incarcerated, in Virginia.
University of Kentucky
(95) Neil Mason Williams, 59-year-old Associate Director Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory University of Kentucky (UK),
was arrested, 5 March 2014, on child pornography possession charges on campus by campus police. Williams was federally indicted, 4 September 2014, on one count per, receipt and possession, with a federal arrest warrant issued the same day.
Williams pleaded guilty, 11 December 2014, to one count of receipt, with the possession charge dropped, and was sentenced, 11 March 2015, to 5.5 years in federal prison followed by 20 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $7,000 in restitution.
Williams had downloaded “thousands” of CSEM images/videos on his university computer. After his arrest, the university suspended Williams with pay at a $133,908 annual public salary. He had been employed at UK since 1987. His wife, Deborah, also works in UK’s Veterinary Diagnostic Lab. In 2012, Williams and his wife received Mississippi State University Alumni Association Fellows award. Williams had been released to the custody of his wife pending trial. He is now a registered sex offender in Alabama.
(96) Ryan Michael Keith, 33-year-old Pediatric Resident University of Kentucky Hospital,
arrested, April 2019, on six child pornography charges in North Carolina, transferred to Fayette County Detention Center, Kentucky and released on $10,000 bond.
Keith was indicted, 25 June 2019, on all charges and pleaded 23 January 2021, to all six charges of distribution of obscene matter of a minor. He was sentenced, 6 April 2021, to one year in jail followed by two years probation.
In 2017, university employees discovered CSEM on Keith’s account at a pediatric university computer and notified UK campus police who contacted local law enforcement. The University immediately terminated Keith’s employment on 23 June 2017. In December 2017, the State of Kentucky revoked his medical license. It is not clear why Keith’s arrest happened two years after reports of his crime by the University of Kentucky.
(97) Donald Earle Ratcliff, 60-year-old Price-LeBar Professor of Christian Education, Wheaton College,
(Illinois), was arrested, 1 March 2012, on ten child pornography charges. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 5 August 2013, to one count with the other charges dropped. On 25 February 2014, Ratcliff was sentenced to to 3.5 years in state prison. On 30 August 2017, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced, while on supervised release, on new child pornography possession charges.
At the time of his first arrest, Ratcliff had at least 500 CSEM images/videos including of children as young as three-years-old. He told investigators he masturbated to children being raped and said his criminal behavior was “moral” claiming “research in Europe determined viewing such images was a way to avoid becoming a pedophile.”
Ratcliff was free, prior to first sentencing, on $300,000 — reduced from $750,000. His wife (filed for divorce) issued a statement at the time -“My children and I have felt strongly from the moment of Don’s arrest that he needs to remain in the DuPage County Jail. We have not nor will we assist in any fashion in his release.”
Wheaton placed Ratcliff on administrative leave after his arrest and terminated him two weeks later. Ratcliff had been employed at Wheaton since 2006. Previous employment included: Department Chair, Circleville Bible College (1975–78); Dean, Christian Union Bible School, West Indies (1978–79); Director Christian Education, Vinton Baptist Church (1981–82); Biola University and Vanguard University (California) and Associate Professor, Toccoa Falls College (Georgia). He research included a focus on “Counseling Parents of the Mentally Retarded: A Christian Perspective.” His dissertation examined elementary schools.
Ratcliff is a registered sex offender in Florida. In 2016 another Wheaton College employee, Benjamin Felker, was arrested on child pornography charges. His case is detailed in the Staff Section.
(98) Joseph Jerome Benz, 52-year-old psychology professor University of Nebraska,
was arrested, 22 May 2013, on three state counts, per, child pornography possession and distribution. State charges were dismissed, 7 October 2013, in lieu of federal charges. Benz was indicted, 25 September 2013, on two federal counts of receiving and distributing child pornography.
Benz was found guilty, 26 May 2016, and sentenced, September 2016, to 5 years probation only (federal sentencing guidelines are 5½ to 7 years in federal prison), $9,999 in restitution to “numerous victims” and life-time on the sex offender registry. He was free on $10,000 bail during his court process. Elements of Benz’s case have been sealed by the court.
Upon his arrest, Benz possessed more than 20,000 CSEM images/videos including of infants/toddlers. He told investigators he had been involved in the crime since, at least, 2008. He was arrested at his home. It is unclear if he was committing the crime at work and/or on work computers.
The university placed Benz on paid leave, 27 June 2013.; however, he was allowed to continue developing a distance-learning course using a university IPad. In August 2015, Benz regisned. He had been employed with the university since 1989. His research included “Attributions of Deception in Dating Situations,” and “Adult Percepton of Emotion Intensity in Human Infant Cries: Effects of Infant Age and Cry Acoustics.”
Benz was also active with the Boy Scouts. Two days after his arrest, the Boys Scouts of America suspended and permanently removed him from all current and future association. His membership and all of his privileges were revoked and he was placed on the Boy Scouts’ ineligible volunteer list.
Texas A&M
(99) Matthew Kirk Irwin, 47-year-old Assistant Professor Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts Texas A&M University-Galveston,
was arrested, 6 August 2015, on child pornography counts. He pleaded guilty, 22 March 2016, to two counts total (one per receipt and possession) and was sentenced, 8 September 2016, to 7.5 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
At the time of his arrest, Irwin had more than 4,000 CSEM videos/images.
The university terminated Irwin in December 2015, after his August arrest. He had been employed at Texas A&M since 2009. Prior to he was employed at Emporia State University (2006–2008), Utah State University (2000–2003) and Westminster College (1995–2000). Irwin volunteered with Habit for Humanity and was an instructor at Wings of Change Martial Arts Academy in Utah.
(100) Douglas Paul Dohrman, 43-year-old Assistant Professor of Human Anatomy and Medical Neurobiology, Texas A&M,
was arrested, 29 January 2009, on child pornography possession charges. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 16 October 2009, to seven counts and was sentenced, at the state level, to four months in jail, seven years supervised release, lifetime on the sex offender registry and 400 hours of community service.
Dohrman was trading in CSEM on his university computer including of children as young as three-years-old. He was caught when a co-worker saw CSEM on Dohrman’s I Tunes and reported this to university officials. The university placed him on paid leave. Texas A&M responded to inquiries about more detailed information regarding how Dorhman’s employment was handled “we are withholding the requested information in its entirety under Section 552.101/Tex. Family Code 261.”
Dorhman was free on $35,000 bail throughout the legal process. He is a registered sex offender in Texas.
(101) Walter Lee Williams, 64-year-old (retired) professor of Anthropology, History and Gender Studies, University of Southern California (USC),
was arrested, 18 June 2013, on federal child sex trafficking charges. He had been indicted, 30 April 2013, on one count production, one count traveling for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a minor and two counts engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places.
In a deal, Williams pleaded guilty, 5 September 2014, to one count of engaging in illicit sexual contact in foreign places and was sentenced, 16 December 2014, to five years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release and $25,000 in restitution. Williams must register as a sex offender for life.
Williams was arrested by the FBI and Los Angeles police two years after a USC student submitted a tip reporting Williams was traveling overseas to exploit vulnerable children (Thailand, Mexico, Philippines) and produce child pornography. At the time of his arrest, Williams was retired and living in Mexico. His research focused on Native Americans and sexuality as well as Black American Attitudes Toward Africa: The Missionary Movement, 1877–1900. He won Gay Book of the Year Award (1987); Ruth Benedict Award — Society of Lesbian and Gay Anthropologists (1986); Award for Outstanding Scholarship — American Foundation for Gender and Genital Medicine and Science (1987) and Gandhi, King, Ikeda Award — Morehouse College (2006). Williams was a member of the Buddhist Universal Association. He had been employed at University of Cincinnati prior to USC.
Colorado
(102) Pamela Kay Coke, 50-year-old Associate Professor English Education Colorado State University (CSU),
was arrested, April 2019, on one count of sexually assaulting a child between the ages of 15–18.
Coke first pleaded not guilty, 22 July 2019 and then, in a plea deal, pleaded guilty, 24 July 2020, to one count of second-degree assault causing bodily injury with other charges dismissed. She was sentenced to eight years probation and eight years community service.
She was not ordered to register as a sex offender and had been free on personal recognizance during the legal process. Coke was caught by an anonymous Safe2Tell report. She was, reportedly, like “a second mom” to the child she assaulted. Although Coke’s university colleagues submitted letters in her defense, the judge dismissed these “as irrelevant … ‘Who cares that she’s a fantastic professor?” the judge said.
The university placed Coke on administrative leave after her arrest and as of February 2021 has, apparently, taken no other action. Coke remains employed and her faculty page remains live on CSU’s site. CSU students have started a petition demanding her termination. Coke has been employed at CSU since 2002. Adolescents’ literature is one of Coke’s area of specialization. In 2007, the Colorado State University Alumni Association and the Student Alumni Connection awarded Coke the Best Teacher Award.
(103) Raymond Vance Fulkerson, 63-year-old Musical Theatre Program Director, University of Northern Colorado (UNC-Colorado)
was arrested, 2 July 2009, on state charges of child sexual exploitation. On September 11, 2009, nine additional counts of sexual exploitation of a child and unlawful sexual contact were added for a total of 15 related charges.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 4 January 2010, to one charge, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, 3 March 2010, to four years in State prison followed by five years of supervised release. UNC-Colorado students and alumni “expressed outrage” at his reduced prison sentence.
Fulkerson’s “resume was his candy to get victims into his house.” He used his professional position at UNC to lure students, as young as five-years-old, for home-based private lessons and hid a camera in his bathroom — which a former student discovered and reported — used to produce child pornography. He asked his students to sing while they urinated. Upon his arrest, investigators seized some 150 CSEM DVDs from Fulkeron’s home and identified 13 victims.
Fulkeson used his UNC-Colorado position to foster involvement with high school and middle school students, including overnight travel, and middle-school thespian conferences. He had directed a production of Urinetown: The Musical. Fulkerson was placed on paid leave after his arrest and he resigned on 24 September 2009. He had been employed at UNC-Colorado since 1989, and was given tenure despite reports of sexually inappropriate behavior.
UNC-Colorado hired Mountain States Employers Council to conduct a review of Fulerson’s employment history and made the report public. The university president released a statement stating, “we owed it to our students and their parents, our faculty and staff, and the citizens of Colorado to take a serious look at ourselves in light of those allegations.” Fulkeson was previously employed at University of Utah and Loretto Heights College. He was released from jail in 2013 and is a registered sex offender in Colorado.
(104) Daniel Miles Cress, 53-year-old Sociology and Criminal Justice Professor and Honors Program Director at Western Colorado University,
was arrested, 2 March 2016, and charged with four state felony child pornography related charges. A fifth charge was later added.
In a deal, Cress pleaded guilty, 16 March 2017, to one exploitation count with the other charges dismissed. Cress was sentenced, 5 May 2017, to two years probation and no contact with his 14-year-old daughter.
Cress was caught when he engaged in child sexual exploitation on-line with what he thought was a 15-year-old girl — instead an undercover investigator.
The university placed Cress on administrative leave upon news of his arrest. In addition to his role as Honors Director, Cress also led student trips to Egypt (2013) and Morocco (2014) for ARAMFO Educational Foundation and was ARAMFO’s Academic Advisor at Western Colorado State University — leading summer camping trips for students. His research examined non-profits, poverty and homelessness.
Cress is a registered sex offender in Colorado.
(105) Scott Bradford Bean, 47-year-old Brass and Percussion Department Chair, University of Denver (DU),
was arrested, 3 May 2019, on child pornography and exploitation charges.
In a deal, Bean pleaded guilty, 23 September 2019, to one count each of sexual exploitation of a child and sexual contact without consent, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, 25 November 2019, to five months in jail followed by eight years of supervised release.
Bean was caught attempting to meet a 13-year-old trafficked child, an undercover investigator, for the purposes of exploitation. His arrest was part of Operation Broken Heart. The university suspended Bean after his arrest. Prior to his employment at DU, Bean was employed at: University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (2012–2014); Central Connecticut State University (2006–2012); University of Hartford (2008–2012); Yale School of Music and the Norfolk Chamber Festival.
Bean was a registered sex offender in Colorado. He died unexpectedly on 11 February 2021.
(106) Mark David Baertschy, 35-year-old Physics Professor University of Colorado Denver,
was arrested, 31 March 2006, on two state counts, one per, sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust, and sexual assault on a child, pattern of abuse. A third charge, sexual exploitation of a child, was added later. Baertschy was convicted, 2007, by jury trial on sexual assault charges and sentenced, 14 August 2009, to 20 years to life in state prison. In October 2012, he was denied a request for re-sentencing.
Baertschy volunteered with Boulder County Partners, an at-risk-youth mentoring program, to mentor a 10-year-old boy — whom he sexually assaulted, over two years, forcing the child to perform “hundreds” of sex acts on him. Baertschy used pornography as a grooming mechanism and he also volunteered with Attention Homes, another non-profit for at-risk-youth. The university placed Baertschy on paid leave after his arrest. Baertschy completed his doctoral degree at University of California Davis.
(107) Kevin Gregory Fuller, 41-year-old Associate Professor of Biology Columbia College Chicago,
was arrested, 19 November 2009, on one count transporting/shipping child pornography. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, and was sentenced, 9 February 2011, to six years in prison followed by a life-time of supervised release. Fuller was free on $100,000 bond during the legal process.
At the time of his arrest, Fuller had more than 300 CSEM images on his work computer and used his college email (kgfuller@colum.edu) to trade in CSEM images/videos.
Prosecutors said the images were “some of the worst images we’ve ever seen” and included “images of extreme violence” including of infants and newborns as young as three-months old.
Fuller had been employed at the college since 2003 and was Chair of the Columbia College Council. Previously he was employed at Northwestern University. Fuller is a registered sex offender in Illinois.
(108) Faiz A. Al-Khayyal, 61-year-old Associate Professor Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech),
was arrested, 5 August 2009, on child pornography charges. He was indicted and, in a state jury trial, convicted, 6 February 2014, on 76 counts of child sexual exploitation.
Al-Khayyal was sentenced, 30 June 2014, to 10 years probation, and on appeal, four years home arrest. He was free on $250,000 bond throughout the legal process.
Al-Khayyal was trading in images that included a “girl holding a whip in her mouth… and a girl, bound and naked.”
University officials discovered CSEM on Al-Khayyal’s work computer and contacted Georgia’s Attorney General. Al-Khayyal was arrested at the airport with CSEM on his laptop upon his return to Georgia after a trip to China. The university suspended Al-Khayyal without pay. He had been employed at Georgia Tech since 1980 and is no longer employed there.
Al-Khayyal is a registered sex offender.
(109) Diane Maire Ross, 45-year-old English Department Chair, Lake Forest College,
was arrested, 8 May 2000, on two child pornography distribution charges and indicted, July 2000, on 13 counts.
In a deal, Ross pleaded guilty to one count of solicitation, with the charges dropped, and was sentenced, 5 October 2000, to two years probation, with no jail time, ordered to pay a $2,000 fine and 100 hours of community service with no registration as a sex offender.
Ross was caught when members of her child pornography “ring” came under investigation in California. She had been employed at Lake Forest since 1980. Lake Forest maintained Ross’ employment, even after her arrest and guilty plea. She is no longer employed at Lake Forest.
Ross received her degrees from Yale University. She is the mother of two children and was a Girl Scout troop leader supervising weekend camping trips. Ross has also been charged with mulitple motor vehicle violations, proving liquor to a minor and driving while drunk. Her husband, Willis R. Buck, is well-known attorney and former clerk for Judge Milton I. Shadur of the Northern District of Illinois
(110) Edward Bryan Roberts, 54-year-old physics professor Winona State University (WSU),
was charged, 12 November 2014, on eight child pornography counts.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 25 March 2015, to one child possession charge and was sentenced, 4 June 2015, to five years probation, with no jail time, and ordered to pay $1,280 in fines. Roberts was free on personal recognizance.
Roberst was using his university computer to trade in CSEM including of children as young as four-years-old. Reportedly, IT staff discovered CSEM on Roberts’ computer in 2011 and reported this to university authorities and law enforcement. It is unclear why Roberts was not charged until 2014. The university placed Roberts on paid administrative leave and, later, did not renew his contract. He had been hired at WSU in 2008. Roberts is a registered sex offender in Iowa.
(111) Gavin C. Swiatek, 49-year-old biochemistry instructor Rutgers University,
was arrested, 10 January 2012, on two child pornography charges of distribution and possession.
In deal, he pleaded guilty, 11 December 2012, to one distribution charge and was senteced, 4 March 2013, to four years in state prison, no supervised release, a $1,000 fine and $50 in victim restitution.
Swiatek used his university computer to trade in CSEM.
Swiatek was placed on leave and on March 2012, resigned. He had been employed at Rutgers since 2007. He is now permanently barred from public employment. He is not required to register as a sex offender.
(112) Andrew Whitmore Campbell, 35-year-old English instructor Wake Tech Community College,
was arrested, April 2013, on 12 child pornography counts.
In a deal, Campbell pleaded guilty to two counts, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, 1 June 2014, to probation only with no jail time.
Campbell was caught by undercover investigators on a CSEM site called motherless.com and other sites titled jail-bait and incest that included the abuse of children as young as six-years-old. His online handle was “Mr. Silk 77.”
Campbell volunteered with Duke University’s Talent Identification Program (TIP) “mentoring” children grades four through twelve. He was held at the Wake County Detention Center on $900,000 bond.
Campbell is a registered sex offender in North Carolina.
Florida State University
(113) Michael Edward Sullivan, 49-year-old Teaching Assistant English Department Florida State University (FSU),
was arrested, 27 September 2010, and charged, in total, with 157 child pornography possession counts. In a deal, Sullivan pleaded guilty to all 157 charges, 18 April 2016, and was sentenced to five years in ate jail followed by three supervised release.
Sullivan was using Limewire to trade in infant rape. He also used the search term “bib-cam.” Sullivan said he had been trading in CSEM for about two years. He had at least 1,000 CSEM videos/images at the time of his arrest.
At the time of his arrest, FSU maintained Sullivan’s employment status and “reassigned to non-classroom duties until this investigation is complete.” Sullivan was terminated, 12 October 2010, by involuntary separation. He was a Ph.D. student and employed as a graduate Teaching Assistant in the English Department and a tutor in the Digital Studio. Sullivan is a registered sex offender in Florida.
(114) Dayton Michael Cramer, 70-year-old Deputy General Counsel Florida State University (FSU),
was arrested, 14 February 2017, on one charge of soliciting a minor for sex. He had been indicted, 7 March 2017, on one count. Cramer pleaded not guilty and was convicted, 21 March 2018, and sentenced, 15 June 2018, to 10 years in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release and sex offender registration. In 2019, his appeal was denied.
Cramer was caught when he accessed Craig’s List to engage in child sex trafficking. He was arrested, by US Marshals as part of Operation Cupid’s Arrow, when he traveled to meet an undercover agent posing as a step-mother trafficking her 13-year-old daughter.
In chats, he said he had engaged in child sex trafficking with teenagers before. He sent pictures of his penis and detailed descriptions of what he would do to the 13-year-old girl. In addition, Cramer had placed his own Craig’s List ad looking for a “virgin.”
Upon his arrest, FSU placed Cramer on leave. He later resigned. Cramer had been employed at FSU since 2000. Carmer is a retired US Army colonel and was previously chief legal counsel for US Military Academy at West Point with a record of sexual harassment and/or discrimination against female staff. Cramer was disbarred in Florida 15 October 2018. He had been, 2005, Chair of Florida Bar Education Law Committee responsible for recommendations on legislation and bar actions for kindergarten through high school and post-secondary education.
Cramer is, at least, the third similar arrest among FSU employees. Several FSU students, Zhaozhao Shen and Jordan Steiner, have also been arrested.
(115) Michael Dean Stroup, 52-year-old Associate Dean, Rusche College of Business, Stephen F.
Austin State University (SFA), was arrested, 29 September 2015, on one child pornography possession charge on campus.
In September 2017, he was indicted on 14 possession charges. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 14 September 2018, to one count, with the others dropped, and was sentenced to 10 years in jail.
Thee months later, he was released from jail, on a “shock probation” motion and sentenced, 11 January 2019, to 10 years supervised release, 200 hours community service and a $1000 fine. He must register as a sex offender for life.
Stroup was using university computers and networks to trade in CSEM. He was caught when another employee reported “inappropriate photos” on shared department file. Campus police made the arrest and led the investigation. Stroup had “thousands” of CSEM images. He had searched for “tween nude girls,” “tween girls off their bikinis” “pregnant girls under 16” and “pre puberty girls.”
Stroup was suspended with pay after his 2015 arrest and resigned in October of 2017. He had been FSA’s interim Dean of the Rusche College of Business and interim Director of the Gerald W. Schlief School of Accountancy. His Ph.D. is from Florida State University.
Stroup is a registered sex offender in Texas.
University of Wisconsin
(116) Dennis B. Tomashek, 54-year-old Lecturer, Department of Occupational Science &
Technology, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee (UWM), was arrested, 20 March 2019, on five child pornography possession charges. In a deal, Tomashek pleaded guilty, July 2019, and was sentenced, 22 August 2019, to three years in jail followed by six years supervised release and a $2,500 fine. He must register as a sex offender for life.
Tomashek was caught when he posted CSEM to his public Tumblr account. At the time of his arrest he possessed CSEM including of a toddler. UWM terminated Tomashek’s employment after his arrest. His area of research included a focus on disabilities and student accessibility on campus. He had been employed by UWM since 2007.
He is, at least, the fourth UWM employee arrested on similar charges including Jay Dobberke, in the Staff Section and Anthony Azenabor on four counts of sexual assault against a graduate student.
(117) Matthew LeRoy Faerber, 51-year-old Professor of Vocal Music Education & Choral Director University of Wisconsin Superior (UWS),
was discovered, in 2013, to have been convicted of child sex offenses in 1990, when he was a choir director at Murray High School in Utah. Faerber had been charged, in 1990, with three counts of sexual abuse of a child, two counts of lewdness involving a child, two counts of gross lewdness and one count each of fornication and sodomy.
In a plea deal, charges were dropped in exchange for a guilty plea to two counts of attempted sexual abuse of a child and Faerber was sentenced, 1 February 1991, to half a year in jail (with two of those months under house arrest) followed by three years of supervised release.
A tip was made to UWS legal department regarding Faerber’s previous conviction. The university placed Faerber on paid leave, 28 August 2013, then unpaid leave, 7 October 2013, and on, 25 October 2013, Faerber resigned. He had been employed at UWS since 1998.
Faerber had also been Director of the volunteer Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Artistic Director at Arrowhead Chorale in Duluth, Minnesota and was a Mormon missionary in Brazil 1981–1982.
(118) Duff G. Campbell, a 59-year-old Associate Professor of Mathematics Hendrix College,
was arrested, 29 March 2019, on 150 charges of distributing, possessing or viewing sexually explicit conduct involving children. Campbell pleaded not guilty, 5 April 2019, to all 150 charges. As of August 2020, all charges were dropped.
Campbell hosted Rwandan students in his home with the Rwandan Presidential Scholars Program funded by the William J. Clinton Foundation and linked with Bridge2Rwanda. Campbell also traveled to Rwanda to assist with student selection.
Campbell has been employed at Hendrix since 2000 and remains employed. The college had placed Campbell on administrative leave and banned him from campus after his arrest. He is a Harvard graduate (1989) with a doctorate from Boston University and a retired US Army veteran who previously taught at West Point — the US Military Academy. In 2018, he won the Arkansas State, Clinton School of Public Service Crossword Puzzle Championship. He is married and a father of two children. His wife is a Harvard Law School graduate and a professor at University of Arkansas Law School, family law clinic, and a former President of the Children’s Rights Project.
(119) Eugene Michael Hendrix, 60-year-old Associate Biomedical Sciences Professor Missouri State University (MSU),
was arrested, 7 October 2013, on child pornography charges. Hendrix pleaded guilty, 14 March 2014, to one distribution charge and was sentenced, 23 May 2014, to 17 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release, with no fines or victim restitution, and must register as a sex offender.
Hendrix was caught attempting to meet an undercover investigator posing as a father trafficking his 9-year-old and 11-year-old step-children. At the time of his arrest he had over 70,000 CSEM videos/images.
Hendrix had been a biomedical sciences professor at MSU from 1995–2007. He was a registered sex offender, after serving 3.5 years in Ohio state prison for raping nine-year-old boy in 1983, when MSU hired him. His sex offender status was known to MSU officials at the time of his hiring. When a MSU student discovered and reported his sex offender status, in 2007, Hendrix resigned with a $166,000 pay-out by MSU. He is the father of three children.
Previously, Hendrix was employed at: University of Cincinnati (1988–1995); Wilmington College (1990–1995); Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio (1993–1995)
(120) Guy R. Rosenschein, 63-year-old pediatric surgeon and adjunct clinical professor at
University of Missouri, was arrested, 8 November 2016, on two state charges of child pornography possession and distribution in New Mexico.
He was released, 9 November 2016, on $10,000 bond and arrested again November 2016, on fifteen federal child pornography charges and indicted, 26 June 2018, on all fifteen charges. New Mexico State charges were dismissed, 24 April 2017, in lieu of federal charges. Charges may be pending at the state level in Arkansas.
Several motions to suppress evidence were filed in federal court. As of June 2021, Rosenschein remains in federal pre-trial custody with no current court date scheduled.
At the time of his arrest, Rosenschein possessed hundreds of CSEM images/videos an almost naked 16-year-old boy, a former patient, in Rosenschein’s bed. Rosenschein owned two planes and a helicopter and may have trafficked the child to Florida, Arkansas and Nevada. In addition, he allegedly, accessed children for abuse and trafficking in his professional capacity across, at least, four states. As of May 2020, there are twenty civil lawsuits, by former child patients, pending against Rosenschein, and Presbyterian Healthcare Services for damages related to sexual abuse and child pornography production.
Rosenschein also posed as a humanitarian including a trip to Cambodia, with Aviation Sans Frontières, for a “humanitarian project” that appeared to be a cover for his alleged engagement in child sex trafficking.
The University of Missouri terminated his employment after his arrest. Rosenschein was also employed at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Missouri, Presbyterian Healthcare Services, Head of Pediatric Urology, in New Mexico and Northwest Arkansas Medical Center. Two years after his arrest Missouri medical board revoked his license. New Mexico revoked his license four months after his arrest and New York revoked in December 2018.
FBI Albuquerque seeks information re: additional victims Tel: 505–889–1300
Brigham Young University
(121) Robert Bentley Jackson, 64-year-old Assistant Professor Information Systems
Brigham Young University (BYU), was arrested, 16 February 2006, on state charges of one count of sexual exploitation of a minor and two charges of voyeurism. In deal, to avoid federal child pornography charges also being brought, he pleaded guilty, 11 April 2006, to two state charges with the third count dropped, and was sentenced, 23 May 2006, to two years in state jail.
Jackson was caught by a tip made to local police that he had secretly made a video of a local teenage girl undressing. The police confiscated the video, which was on his university laptop. The child was identified and her parents were notified. Jackson resigned after his arrest, 17 February 2006. He had been employed at BYU since 1988.
(122) Michio Zushi, a 55-year-old adjust professor Utah Valley University & Brigham Young University,
was arrested and charged, March 2014, with aggravated sexual abuse of a 12-year-old child. In July 2014, Zushi accepted a plea deal and September 2014, Zushi was sentenced to 7 months in jail with the potential of serving half of that time under house arrest. He was also sentenced to 3 years of supervised release after completion of his sentence and restitution to the victim. Both universities did not renew Zushi’s contracts after his arrest.
(123) In Soo Ahn, 63-year-old Chair Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, Bradley
University, was arrested, 2006, on felony aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a child. Ahn pleaded guilty and was sentenced, 2007, to four years probation. Ahn sexually assaulted a 13-year-old female relative.
Bradley University was aware that Ahn was registered child sex offender and allowed continued employment and promotions. University President Roberts said Bradley was “in compliance with all legal requirement for a sex offender working on campus.” Students at Bradley discovered Ahn was a registered child sex offender and started an online petition demanding he be terminated. Students argued that by “continuing to let this convicted pedophile teach, Bradley University stands by this convicted sexual predator.” The students said “words cannot describe how disgusted we are that Bradley continues to employ In Soo Ahn.”
In the face of student outrage, Ahn retired, 7 September 2018. Ahn told the student newspaper his retirement was “unfair.” Ahn had been employed at Bradley for 33 years. He is a registered sex offender in Illinois.
(124) Brian Kent Birky, 61-year-old Director Florida Industrial and Phosphate Research Institute
Florida Polytechnic University was arrested, 7 March 2019, on 9 child pornography charges. Birky was arrested again, 14 March 2019, on 300 additional child pornography charges. Birky pleaded not guilty and is free bond. His next court date, a pre-trial conference, is scheduled for 28 June 2021.
Birky was trading in the rape and abuse of children as young as 18-months old. Sheriff Grady Judd, Polk County Florida, said “I couldn’t even begin to describe the images that were found on this man’s computer.” Images/videos included a child younger than the age of 5, sadomasochistic abuse involving a child, sexual battery involving a child and sexual bestiality involving a child.
Florida Polytechnic University placed Birky on leave without pay immediately after his first arrest. Birky resigned on 12 March 2019. Birky’s wife, Malysavanh Birky, remains employed at Florida Polytechnic University as library assistant.
(125) James (Jaime) R. Lara, Medieval Art History Professor, Arizona State University (ASU),
resigned, November 2017, after the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn revealed Lara sexually abused multiple children as young as 9-years-old over many years in his position as a priest. Lara was chaplain of the Boy Scouts and head of the altar boys.
Lara was defrocked, in 1992, for his crimes against children. He was then hired by Colombia University, University of Notre Dame, California State University-Los Angeles and Yale University, where he was employed from 1995 to 2009 and was chair of the religion and the arts program. Arizona State University hired Lara in 2013.
Although survivors and survivor-advocates contacted the universities employing, reporting his predatory past, the universities, apparently, ignored the information about Lara. Apparently, no criminal charges were filed against Lara; although, now, New York State has expanded the statute of limitations (SOL) on child sex abuse crimes, including a “look-back window,” and charges may still be brought.
(126) Howard Joseph Vorder Bruegge III, 35-year-old math professor Hillsborough Community College
(HCC) was arrested, 24 October 2018, on two counts of (one per) child pornography possession and distribution. Bruegge pleaded guilty, on 29 March 2019, to both charges and was sentenced, 22 November 2019, to 11.5 years in jail followed by 20 years of supervised release. He was held without bond.
Bruegge was using Kik to distribute CSEM images/videos of infants, toddlers and young children. He also took videos of college students, without their knowledge, through peep-holes in campus bathrooms and distributed these on-line. Bruegge was caught when Kik notified Canadian law enforcement. He resigned from HCC after his arrest. HCC made no public statement related to his arrest, sentencing and crimes on campus.
University of Connecticut
(127) Robert F. Miller, 66-year-old Music Department Chair, University of Connecticut,
was investigated for a series of substantive allegations of child sex abuse over the course of his career.
Miller, reportedly, sexually abused children at the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, a camp for terminally and “seriously ill children,” when he was a counselor (1989 to 1992), sexually abusing students at Whittier Intermediate School in Fairfax, Virginia when he was a teacher (1960s to 1970s), sexually exploited UConn students and supplied students with drugs. Miller volunteered, for several years, in the former Soviet Union, in recreational centers for pediatric cancer patients.
University administrators were aware of allegations since, at least, 2006. In 2013, UConn contacted law enforcement and prosecutors, hired an independent investigator and released an investigative report. The investigation found “strong, credible evidence” Miller “engaged in serious misconduct with minors and with University students” and “the response of University officials prior to February 2013 was insufficient to ensure the safety of minors on campus and University students.”
Miller was employed by UConn since 1982 and served as chair of the music department. He was placed on paid administrative leave and barred from campus in late June 2013. Miller was, later, allowed to retire with his full $69,000 annual pension. His salary was $135,000. UConn is a public university funded by tax-payers. Connecticut’s statute of limitations (SOL) for felony sex crimes is one of the shortest in the country; however, as of March 2018, action is under way to eliminate SOL for child sex abuse crimes in Connecticut. Miller may yet be charged.
(128) Jason Derek Gibson, 38-year-old Assistant Research Professor, Department of Molecular &
Cell Biology at the University of Connecticut, was arrested and charged, 15 August 2018, on child pornography charges. In a deal, Gibson pleaded guilty and was sentenced, 29 February 2020, to 2.5 years in jail followed by 10 years of supervised release and 10 years as a registered sex offender.
At the time of his arrest he had, at least, 20,000 images and 100 videos of child sex abuse crimes. Gibson said he “may have been connected to the UConn network” when trading in child rape. Gibson was caught in an investigation of an anonymous tip (made on 31 May 2018, to the FBI) claiming Gibson was in a Whatsapp groupchat called “Sweet Children” trading in the rape and abuse of children as young as seven-years-old.
UConn allowed Gibson to resign, 22 July 2018, just prior to his arrest. He had been employed with UConn since 2015. Gibson was a National Institute of Health (NIH) postdoctoral fellow at UConn Health and volunteered with disadvantaged youth at UConn’s Upward Bound program and a separate federally-funded program for “first-generation, low-income college students and/or those from underrepresented populations.” Gibson was also an adjunct faculty at Goodwin College (2017/2018) and adjunct faculty at Manchester Community College since 2012 until his arrest. At Manchester Community College he also worked with vulnerable youth, volunteering with the FIRST Scholars program. Gibson’s bond was set at $750,000. He remained in custody throught the legal process
(129) Adolfo Zayas-Bazan Albaisa, 56-year-old Adjunct Professor, University of Miami & Florida
International University, was arrested on child pornography possession charges. He pleaded guilty, February 2019, on one possession count and was sentenced, 29 April 2019, to 6.5 years in jail followed by 20 years of supervised release. Albaisa maintained two storage units housing over five thousands images/videos of child sex abuse. Albaisa’s graduate degree, in architecture, is from Harvard University.
University of Utah
(130) Grant Douglas Smith, 47-year-old Professor of Material Science and Engineering, University of Utah,
was arrested, 26 November 2011, on one child pornography possesion charge. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 2 May 2013, to one possession count and was sentenced to a 2.5 year suspended jail sentence, five years probation and must register as a sex offender.
Grant was caught watching CSEM on his laptop in first-class on a flight from Utah to Boston. Another passenger saw the images and reported him. He was arrested when the flight landed in Boston. Images included children as young as five-years-old. Prosecutors said “these were explicitly sexual and extremely disturbing.”
The university placed him on paid leave after his arrest and he resigned on 31 January 2012. Smith had been at the university since 1997. Previously, he was an Assistant Professor at the University of Missouri in Columbia and a senior research scientist at the NASA Ames Research Center in California. Smith is a registered sex offender in Utah.
(131) Sterling Van Wagenen, 71-year-old, Film & Media Arts Professor, University of Utah,
was charged, April 2019, with one count of aggravated sexual abuse of a 7-year-old girl.
He pleaded guilty, April/May 2019, two charges of aggravated sexual abuse of a child (in two separate counties) and was sentenced, July 2019, to two concurrent sentences in the two counties of six years to life in state prison. He was free on $75,000 bail.
Van Wagenen was previously reported, 1993, to law enforcement for the sexual assault of one of his children’s friends Sean Escobar during a sleep-over at Van Wagenen’s home. Esobar was thirteen-years-old. No charges were brought in Escobar’s case. Decades later, Van Wagenen resigned from the University of Utah after an audio recording of his admission of sexually abusing Escobar was made public. The Salt Lake Film Society severed ties with Van Wagenen.
Previously, Van Wagenen was director of the School of Film and Digital Media at the University of Central Florida in Orlando (1999–2004) and an adjunct professor of film at Brigham Young University (1993–1999). He co-founded the Sundance Film Festival with Robert Redford — whom he is related to by marriage.
(132) Charles Morgan, 46-year-old Math Department Chair, Lock Haven University,
was arrested, 1989 in Kentucky on federal charges of two counts of sodomy and one count of sexual assault against two children, one of whom was an 8-year-old boy. He was found guilty and sentenced, 1990, to five years in jail — serving 3 years nine months by enrolling in a therapy program. It is unclear if therapy was provided for his victims.
Morgan failed to disclose his criminal conviction when hired at Lock Haven University. The university became aware of Morgan’s crime after completing a background check in 2016 and terminated Morgan. In March 2019, Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court denied an appeal of a lower-court decision directing Lock Haven University to rehire Morgan. Morgan has been employed with Lock Haven University since 2004 and was, previously, involved in a math competition for high school students. His doctorate in mathematics is from Michigan State University (2003).
(133) Kevin Connor Armitage, 53-year-old professor Associate Professor American Studies Miami University (Ohio),
was arrested, 31 May 2018, on federal charges of crossing state lines to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor. Armitage was indicted, 26 June 2018, and pleaded guilty, 1 May 2019, to one count and was sentenced, 15 August 2019, to 2.9 years in federal prison. He had been held in custody, with no bail/bond, during the legal process.
Armitage was a “senior member” of a website providing information on trafficked children and adult commercial sex. In over 500 posts he detailed his experiences in Ohio, Arizona, Kansas, Colorado, and Tijuana, Mexico. His on-line name was “CletusTheYokel” and he said “young spinner is what I live for” to an undercover agent. He was caught in Missouri attempting to meet a 14-year-old trafficked child.
Armitage’s research focused on children and nature including Bird Day for Kids (2007), and reviews such as Children’s Nature: The Rise of the American Summer Camp (2008), The Child is a Born Naturalist (2007) and The Nature of Modern Boyhood (2016) regarding the Boy Scouts.
Armitage resigned his university position on June 2018. He had been employed at Miami University since 2008. He is a registered sex offender in Kansas.
University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)
(134) Thomas Fairleigh Denove, 70-year-old former
Cinematography Department Chair, University of California Los Angeles ‘(UCLA) School of Theater, Film and Television,
pleaded no contest to two counts of child sexual assault and not guilty to a third, related, charge in November 2018. On 21 May 2019, he was sentenced to eight years in state prison. His $2 million bail had been posted, 28 November 2018, and he had been free pending sentencing.
UCLA allowed Denove to retire as an emeritus professor, still on schedule to teach classes, after charges had been brought. The student newspaper, The Daily Bruin, published the story of child sexual assault charges brought against Denove. In response, UCLA issued a statement claiming the university “was not aware of the charges against Denove,” does not conduct background checks on faculty hires and removed Denove’s faculty page and teaching schedule.
After extensive student reporting, eventually, UCLA revoked Denove’s emeritus status and title and all privileges at UCLA including attending universities events and issued a public statement. Denove had also been employed at the American Film Institute (1988–1994) and was awarded in the film industry. He is a registered sex offender in California. This is, at least, the third arrest of a UCLA employee — see the Staff Section listing forMichael Sondheimer.
(135) Guido Germano, 59-year-old Medical Professor, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)
David Geffen School of Medicine, was arrested, 19 June 2019, and charged with two child pornography counts — one per possession and distribution. In a deal, Germano pleaded no contest and was sentenced, 30 September 2019, to five years probation with one day in jail. He must register as a sex offender for life.
Germano was also director of the Division of Artificial Intelligence Medicine at Cedars-Sinai hospital. The hospital terminated him immediately after his arrest. UCLA, on 1 August 2019, placed Germano on administrative leave and, as of 16 April 2020, Germano is no longer employed at UCLA.
Germano is a registered sex offender in California.
(136) Reginald Archibald, Assistant Resident Physician Department of Nephrology and Special Investigator,
Rockefeller University Hospital (RUH), sexually abused an estimated thousand or more children and produced and distributed child pornography of the abuse. Archibald deceased in 2007.
In 1960/61, New York County DA’s Office opened an investigation into child sex abuse by Archibald but prosecutors did not pursue the case. Archibald, as a doctor at RUH, saw some 9,000 children over 40-years and may be “one of the most prolific abusers in recent history.” Over the years many complaints were made to and ignored by RUH administrators.
In 2018, Rockefeller University asked survivors to come forward, opened an investigation, created a public website https://www.rucares.org/ra-information and has admitted that university officials were aware, as early as 1960, that Archibald was using his professional position to rape and trafficking children. The university opened a therapy fund for survivors and removed Archibald’s emeritus status. In August 2019, RUH settled suits with some 200 survivors and has also filed law suits against its insurers, including Aetna, Travelers, Chubb, and Lloyd’s of London, saying they are refusing to pay out costs to settle abuse claims or to assist with the legal defense costs. Cost may run up to a billion dollars.
Archibald also volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club and multiple summer camp pools in Lower Hudson Valley and New York City to “hunt for victims.” The Boys and Girls Club awarded Archibald with their American Medallion Award for his 26 years of “service.” He also took children to his summer camp, on a remote island, in Canada for the purposes of abuse. Archibald’s employment at RUH spanned 1940–1982. He was also employed as Professor of Biochemistry at Johns Hopkins University (1946–1948).
(137) Joshua Robert McDill, 46-year-old Adjunct Professor, Napa Valley College,
was indicted, 15 February 2018, on two child pornography, one per possession and distribution, charges.
In a deal, McDill pleaded guilty to both charges and was sentenced, September 2018, to 6.5 years in prison per charge to be served concurrently followed by seven years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
McDill used methamphetamine while trading in CSEM. He was previously employed at the University of Alberta, Canada.
(138) Paul W. King, 62-year-old Humanities Lecturer New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT),
was arrested, 16 August 2017, and charged with one count, per, Endangering the Welfare of a Child (CSEM distribution) and Endangering the Welfare of a Child (CSEM possession).
He was indicted on three child pornography charges, 9 April 2018, and has been free during the legal process. His next court appearance is scheduled for 9 June 2021.
New Jersey Institute of Technology placed King on unpaid leave after his arrest — pending the outcome of his case.
(139) John R. Porter, 63-year-old Biology Graduate Programs Director, University of the Sciences
in Philadelphia, was charged and indicted, 4 February 2016, on two federal child pornography counts — one per receipt and possession.
He was sentenced, 22 February 2018 , to five years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release plus $54,500 in victim restitution and a $5,000.00 Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JVTA) fee.
Porter had been employed by University of the Sciences since 1983. He was awarded the Lindback Foundation Award For Distinguished Teaching in 2011 and was President of the Faculty Council.
Porter was involved with, and a judge for, Delaware Valley Science Fairs (DVSF), a non-profit for children in 6th to 8th grades related to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). His research focused on plant toxins and children. Porter was in home detention on $100,000 bail pending sentencing.
(140) Brian J. Coley, 50-year-old Assistant Professor of English at Joliet Junior College (JJC),
was arrested, 2 May 2019, and charged with two counts of child pornography. He was indicted on both counts, 15 May 2019. Coley was released when 10% of his $100,000 bail was posted and is free pending his next court date scheduled for 14 July 2021.
Joliet placed Coley on paid leave pending the outcome of the case. Joliet administrators then scheduled a pre-dismissal hearing, which Coley did not attend, and recommended Coley be terminated as of 29 January 2020 based on his violation of college policy “to be cognizant of his/her imagine as a representative of the College and endeavor to maintain exemplary standards of professional conduct and ethics appropriate to his/her professional position.”
This is, at least, the second related arrest of a Joliet Junior College employee. In 1995, college trustee Thomas Smith was arrested on three child pornography related charges. Smith was sentenced, in a plea deal, in 1996, to 2.5 years probation, 250 hours of community service and a $2,226 fine.
(141) John R. Lewis, 67-year-old (retired) Director of Business and International Education Missouri Southern State University,
was arrested, 21 February 2013, on child pornography charges. He was indicted, 28 February 2013, and pleaded guilty, 9 October 2013, to one count.
In November 2013, Lewis was allowed to withdraw his guilty plea in exchange for a lighter sentence (from 10 to 2 years in jail) with a new, 15 January 2014, guilty plea to possession.
Lewis was sentenced, May 2014, to 2 years in jail followed by 10 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender upon release from federal prison.
Lewis was caught expossing himself to high school students employed on his farm. He also possessed hundreds of CSEM including of children younger than 5-years-old. Lewis was a Sarcoxie school board member, a close friend of late US Congressman Gene Taylor and a retired Navy officer.
Lewis is, at least, the second faculty member at Missouri Southern State University to be charged with child pornography crimes.
(142) Val A. Christensen, 63-year-old Associate Professor of Art and Spiva Art Gallery Director Missouri Southern State University (MSSU),
was arrested and charged, 21 December 2009, on child pornography possession charges. Prosecutors later dismissed the charges and sealed the records.
Christensen had been, per his police confession, trading in CSEM from his university computer. University police caught Christensen and alerted local law enforcement. Christensen was free on $3,500 bond. Missouri Southern State University hired Christensen in 1979 and focused on African Art. Christensen is a former board member of Post Art Library.
(143) Philip J. Gregory, 48-year-old Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Creighton University,
was arrested, 4 August 2016, on federal child pornography charges and indicted 22 May 2018.
He pleaded guilty, and was sentenced, 21 June 2019, to eight years in federal jail followed by 10 years of supervised release, $4,500 in victim restitution and must register as a sex offender upon his release.
At the time of his arrest he possessed an estimaed 25,808 CSEM image and 174 videos. He resigned from Creighton University January 2018.
(144) Mark Deymond Fugler, 61-year-old Civil Engineering Professor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical
University, was arrested, 4 November 2016, on child pornography related charges. He was convicted in Florida state court, 6 June 2019, on nine counts — three per lewd and lascivious exhibition, lewd and lascivious conduct and showing obscene material to a minor.
Fugler was sentenced, 15 August 2019, to 15 years in state prison, $20,583 in restitution and must register as sex offender. He was free on $200,000 bail prior to his conviction.
Fugler abused a 7-year-old girl and showed her child pornography as a grooming mechanism. The child’s mother found a diary her child kept, detailing the abuse, and the mother contacted law enforcement.
Embry-Riddle suspended Fugler, August 2017, without pay after his arrest and he brought a civil suit against Embry-Riddle for suspending him without pay. As of May 2020, the civil suit is still open. Fugler is no longer employed at Embry-Riddle — he had been employed at the university since 1996. His son is an FBI agent in Florida. Fugler is now a registered sex offender in Florida state custody.
(145) Amol Tarachand Kharabe, 41-year-old Assistant Professor of Business at Ohio University (OU),
was arrested, 10 February 2014, and twice indicted (27 January 2014 and 28 April 2014) on a total of 60 child pornography related charges.
On 23 August 2019, in deal, he pleaded guilty to one count per tampering with evidence, receiving stolen property and unauthorized use of property — with all child pornography related charges dismissed — and sentenced to five years of “community control” with no jail time. He was free on $50,000 bond during the legal process.
Kharabe was caught with CSEM on university property, September 2013, including children as young as eight-years old. Franklin County Sheriff Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force contacted Athens Police Department regarding university IP address down-loading “pornographic material involving minors.” The IP address was tracked to a university apartment occupied by Kharabe. Ohio University placed Kharabe on administrative leave and terminated him in May 2015. Kharabe had been with OU since August 2012. His public sector salary was $121,160 per year.
This is, at least, the second arrest of Ohio University employeed on CSEM related charges. In the Staff Section, Jeffrey Shira, an information technology (IT) employee with Ohio University was arrested in 2015.
(146) Keith Andrew Walters, 44-year-old Dean College of Science and Mathematics Valdosta
State University, was arrested, 14 February 2020, on four child pornography related counts and indicted, 29 January 2021, on one count of obscene internet contact with child, one count of computer pornography and three counts of attempt to commit child molestation.
Walters was arrested attempting to meet a trafficked child for the purposes of sexual exploitation. His arrest was part of Operation Broken Arrow. He is free on $25,000 bond pending his next court date. Walters was placed on paid administrative leave after his arrest with a salary of $115,000. His position as dean was revoked but not his tenure.
Prior to his employment at VSU, June 2019, Walters was Chair of the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at Northern Kentucky University.
(147) Douglas Wonders, 63-year-old Adjunct Professor of Photography at Syracuse University
was arrested, March 2017, on child rape charges and was sentenced, 27 August 2019, to ten years probation with no jail time. Wonders must registerd on New York State’s sex offender list for life. He repeatedly raped a girl from the time she was 8-years-old until she was 12-years-old.
Wonders had been employed at Syracuse for 22 years. University officials allowed his “early retirement” in April 2017 — one month after his March 2017 arrest and did not release a public statement on his arrest. His conviction was first made public in September 2019, by student journalists — Syracuse officials claimed no prior knowledge of his child rape conviction.
This is, at least, the third similar arrest of a Syracuse employee. Under the Staff Section, Ryan K. Gavigan, a 28-year-old employee in Student Rights and Responsibilities and Assistant Residence Director and, in 2016, Syracuse University’s Dean Kenneth Kavajecz, was arrested and pleaded guilty to
to “patronizing a prostitute.” Kavajecz was earning just over $499,000 at Syracuse at the time.
He was terminated and hired by the University of Stavanger in Norway. He is currently a solo practice educational consultant in Madison, Wisconsin.
(148) Richard Wesley Gibbs, 66-year-old Chair of the Journalism Department Shippensburg University
(Pennsylvania), was arrested, June 2006, on 14 child pornography charges. Gibbs fled the country while free on $25,000 bail and was caught, October 2006, in Panama using the name Wesley Alonzo.
Gibbs pleaded guilty, March 2008, and was sentenced, 22 July 2008, to one to seven years in Pennsylvania state jail on 14 counts of child pornography possession served concurrently with 12 to 30 years in Ohio state jail for rape of a child related to him from 1987 to 1989.
Shippensburg University allowed Gibbs to retire when he was caught trading CSEM on his work computer in 2005. He was later terminated. He was first employed with Shippensburg in 1990 despite his previous child sex abuse charges in California in the 1980s, with those charges later dismissed, and previously served six months in jail for indecent assault of a 13-year-old boy during a Mormon church field trip. Gibbs is a registered sex offender.
(149) Paul S. Hines, 73-year-old former Interium Dean and Chemistry Professor at Western Connecticut State University (WCSU),
was arrested, 28 October 2013, on child sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child charges. He pleaded not guilty and was convicted 2 September 2014 and sentenced to ten years probation.
Hines was caught after he met an autistic child on-line and engaged in sexual abuse and exploitation with the child. The child’s parents sued Hines for $10 million dollars in damages.
Hines was an award-winning professor at WCSU since 1968. He was a volunteer coordinator and founder of a local homeless shelter, the Dorothy Day Hospitality House, and, with his wife Ann Hines, started the Hanohoe Children’s Clinic in Danbury in 1974.
Hines is a registered sex offender in Connecticut.
(150) David Roger Allen, 55-year-old Director of Theater at Midland College,
was arrested, 15 May 2008, on federal child pornography charges and indicated, 28 May 2008, and two distribution and one receipt counts.
In a deal, Allen pleaded guilty, 3 September 2008, to one receipt count, with the other charges dimissed, and was sentenced, 1 April 2009, to ten years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release and a life-time on the sex offender register. At the time of his arrest he had more than 3,300 CSEM images/videos of “over 400 child victims” including torture, bondage, sadomasochistic, bestiality of infants and children.
The college placed Allen on unpaid leave upon his arrest and did not renew his contract. He had been employed at Midland College for ten years. His wife at the time of his arrest, professor Katherine Allen, remains a professor at Midland College. Allen is a registered sex offender in Florida and Texas.
(151) Mark Manion, 51-year-old Philosophy Program Director, Drexel University,
was arrested, 28 October 2009, on child pornography charges. He pleaded guilty, 13 January 2010, to possession and criminal use of a communication facility/computer and was sentenced to seven years probation with no jail time.
Manion was caught by information technology (IT) staff when he asked IT to remove a virus on his computer.
At the time of his arrest, he had over 800 child sex abuse images including of children as young as six-years-old. He made hundreds of visits to CSEM sites. The university allowed him to resign six weeks after his arrest. Manion taught ethics at Drexel. Manion is a registered sex offender in Pennsylvania.
(152) David Matthew Morgan, 37-year-old Assistant Professor Biblical Studies and Associate Director of the Bryan Institute, Bryan College,
was arrested, 24 June 2012, on charges of Criminal Attempt — Aggravated Child Molestation, Criminal Attempt — Child Molestation and Sexual Exploitation of a Child.
Morgan was caught attempting to meet a child for rape at a gas station in Catoosa County, Georgia. In a deal, all original charges were dropped and Morgan pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit a felony (child pornography) and was sentenced, 2015, to ten years probation. He is not required to register as sex offender.
When Robert Alex Green, editor of the student paper at Bryan College, attempted to report Morgan’s arrest, Bryan College president, Dr. Stephen Livesay, banned the story and threatened to expel Green. Bryan College previously issued a statement claiming Morgan had resigned to “pursue other opportunities.” Green printed his story on a flyer and distributed on campus prompting an all-campus meeting by college administrators, an apology by Livesay and national media attention.
Morgan had led student trips to Greece and Turkey during school holidays. School administrators, when hiring Morgan, said he was “gifted by God” and were excited by “the quality of the people God brought to us for this position.” In February 2014, school faculty passed (30–2) a vote of no confidence in Livesay and four trustees resigned. In May 2017, another trustee resigned, stating loss of confidence in Livesay. In July 2017, more than 1,000 people signed a petition calling on Livesay to resign. Livesay retired in 2019.
In 2013, the University of Oregon awarded Robert Alex Green, the student-journalist, the Ancil Payne Award for Ethics in Journalism.
(153) Sean M. Janson, 32-year-old, Visiting Lecturer English Department Bridgewater State University
and adjunct English professor at Massasoit Community College, was charged, 11 November 2004, with four felony counts of forcible rape, rape, enticing a minor via the Internet for sex, possessing child pornography and one misdemeanor inducing a person under 18 for sex.
Janson raped a sixteen-year-old girl he met on-line; “grabbed the girl by her hair, forced her to perform oral sex on him, and then raped her.” In a deal, felony charges were dropped and Janson pleaded guilty, 1 March 2005, to child pornography possession and indecent assault and battery of the sixteen-year-old girl. He was sentenced, 2005, to probation only with no jail time.
Bridgewater hired Janson in 2006 and Massasoit Community College in 2009. Both institutions knew Janson was a registered sex offender when they hired him. On 24 October 2014, a local newspaper, The Enterprise, acting on a “tip” exposed Janson’s status and employment. At the time, Bridgewater said “it did not not have a policy against hiring sex offenders” claiming the institution had done nothing wrong in employing Janson.
As a result of public pressure and community outrage, due to local media reported on Janson’s sex offender status and employment in higher education, Bridgewater and Massasoit passed policies prohibiting the employment of sex offenders. Jason was placed on administrative leave, when the media broke, and then terminated from both institutions after their policy changes. He had earned $22,239 at Massasoit and $34,068 at Bridgewater — both public institutions. This is, at least, the third employee at Bridgewater State to have been charged with child sex abuse related crimes. See Kyle Patrick Loughlin and Judith Ritacco, in the Staff Section of this list.
(154) John Clifford Longnecker, 77-year-old (retired) Math & Computer Professor University Northern Iowa (UNI),
was arrested, 22 July 2016, on child rape and child pornography charges.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 19 December 2016, to three counts of rape, one count of second-degree sexual assault, 20 counts of distributing, possessing or viewing matter depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child and four counts of engaging children in sexually explicit conduct for use in visual or print medium. Longnecker was sentenced, 19 December 2016, to 95 years in jail with an additional 20 years served concurrently. On 15 October 2019, Longnecker died in prision. He had held on $150,000 bond during the legal proceedings.
Longnecker was caught sexually assaulting four female children, ages 5–8 years-old, who lived in his neighborhood. He produced and distributed child pornography of his rapes of the children. After his arrest, Longnecker’s wife told Arkansas police there were child victims in Iowa including a five-year-old girl and police opened an investigation. Longnecker had been employed with UNI for 33 years, despite failing to obtain his Ph.D. He was also chair of the faculty senate. He retired in 2000 and moved to Bella Vista, Arkansas. UNI faculty senate voted, 11 February 2019, to revoke Longnecker’s emeritus status due to his criminal convictions.
Davidson College
(155) Michael Thomas Bovino, 38-year-old Visiting Assistant Professor of Chemistry Davidson College
was arrested, 18 November 2019, on one charge of attempted promoting prostitution of a minor.
On 13 February 2020, Bovino’s case was dismissed without leave in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, barring further litigation and making the charge eligible to be expunged.
As of June 2021, there is no record of Bovino’s case in Mecklenburg County Court records. Bovino’s arrest was part of Operation Vigilant Shepherd. He had been arrested in York County South Carolina and extradited to North Carolina for prosecution.
Davidson College released the following statement: “Davidson College is aware that an employee was arrested following an investigation by a South Carolina task force. The employee was placed on leave and barred from campus immediately following the arrest. The college cooperated promptly and completely with the investigation and cannot comment further regarding an ongoing criminal investigation.” Bovino’s employment at Davidson ended 31 December 2019. He had been at Davidson since 2017. Prior to, he was employed as Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of North Carolina and Postdoctoral Researcher, Center for Chemical Methodologies and Library Development University of Kansas.
(156) Michael Edwin Dorcas, 53-year-old Biology Professor Davidson College,
was arrested, 7 April 2016, on federal child exploitation charges. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 28 February 2018, to one count of enticement of a minor and was sentenced, 19 December 2019, to 10 years in federal prison followed by 30 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. He was also ordered to pay $10,000 in restituion and a $5,000 fine to Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act 2015. He had been free on $25,000 bond during the legal process.
Dorcas set-up fake on-line profile of a 15-year-old boy in order to sexually exploit a 12-year-old girl along with 16 other children. He denied using college computers or networks to commit the crime and resigned from Davidson, 23 May 2016. Dorcas received his doctorate from Idaho State University (1995) and was a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He was awarded Senior Research Award Association of Southeastern Biologists (2007, 2012); Meritorious Teaching Award World Congress of Herpetology Biologists (2012) and Outstanding Mentor Award Council on Undergraduate Research (2014).
(157) Gary Dean Uhlenkott, 67-year-old Professor of Music and Jesuit Priest Gonzaga University,
was charged with state-level child pornography charges and pleaded guilty, April 2013, to one charge of viewing minors engaged in sexual explicit conduct. He was sentenced, 16 May 2018, to six months in jail.
Uhlenkott amassed a large child pornography collection in his “Gonzaga University office” and used his university email to trade in CSEM. Uhlenkott also purchased $1,654 of CSEM from Canada using his credit card and had the criminal material sent to his Gonzaga office.
The university placed Uhlenkott on administrative leave after law enforcement raided his campus office in April 2013. The Jesuit Order, later, moved Uhlenkott to a Jesuit Retirement Center in Los Gatos, California where, as of 2018, he remains. For the past three decades, Gonzaga University hid, housed and protected “at least 20 Jesuit priests accused of sexual misconduct,” including against children as young as seven-years-old, who had served, primarily, in Alaska and Native American reservations.
Uhlenkott is a registered sex offender in California.
(158) John Preston Creech, 58-year-old Psychology Professor Collin County Community College,
was arrested, 2006, on state-level child pornography and later charged with aggravated sexual assault of a nine-year-old child.
He was indicted, March 2007, and later convicted, on aggravated sexual assault of a child, indecency with a child, and five counts of possession of child pornography. He was sentenced, 16 April 2009, to five ten-year sentences, one twenty-year sentence and a life sentence to run concurrently. He had been free on bail prior to his sentencing.
Creech was caught when college information technology (IT) staff found images and bookmarked sites on his college computer and contacted law enforcement. In addition to hundreds of child sex abuse images he was trading in, he also raped and produced child pornography of a nine-year-old girl who was his girlfriend’s niece. The mother of the child, who suffered seizures, contacted law enforcement when she learned of Creech’s child pornography arrest, concerned he may have victimized her daughter. Creech was employed with the community college from 1996 until 23 August 2006, when the college terminated his employment.
(159) Kurt Elliot Mitman, 37-year-old Visiting Scholar Economics Department Stanford Univesity and an
Assistant Professor at the Institute for International Economic Studies Stockholm University was arrested, 2004, on state-level child sex abuse charges.
Mitman pleaded guilty to two charges — involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and unlawful sexual contact with a minor — and was sentenced, March 2005, to 2.5 to five years in prison and was released after less than two years.
Mitman raped a 14-year-old boy when the child was enrolled at a summer camp for gifted students at Lafayette College where Mitman served as a residential assistant. During his felony jail sentence Mitman was free for “up to 12 hours a day, Mondays through Fridays” and drove to and from University of Pennsylvania where he an office and was enrolled as student.
Despite Mitman’s child sex assault conviction and status as a registered sex offender, Stanford University offered him a Visiting Scholar position and allowed him to complete his term after Stanford’s student newspaper, The Stanford Daily, reported on Mitman’s crimes — of which university officials claimed no prior knowledge. Mitman was a Marshall Scholar at Oxford University and graduated from the University of Virginia in 2004. He is highly awarded and active in community service. His mother, Susan Elliott, is President and CEO National Committee in American Foreign Policy and former US Ambassador to Tajikistan.
Kurt Mitman is a registered sex offender.
(160) Balazs Tarnai, 35-year-old Association Professor of Special Education Seton Hall
University, was arrested, 4 November 2011, on two federal child pornography possession and one reciept charges and indicted, November 2011, on all three counts.
He pleaded guilty, 30 March 2011, and was sentenced, 23 January 2013, to 15 years in federal prison and life-time probation. His appeal was denied in 2019. He was held in custody without bond during the legal process.
Tarnai was trading in CSEM of children as young as five-years-old and possessed thousands of CSEM images. He was also, secretly, recording young boys who used his bathroom.
The university suspended Tarnai “indefinitely” after his arrest and terminated him on 28 November 2011. Tarnai had been employed at Seton Hall since 2008. Tarnai’s research was on the “socio-sexual development of autistic children.” He also taught children’s Bible study classes at St. Vincent Basilica in the Catholic Diocese of Greensburg and was suspended after his arrest.
(161) Matin Lynn Peterson, 76-year-old, (former) Director of University of Idaho’s James A. and Louise McClure Center for Public Policy Research,
was charged, 4 October 2019, with three state-level counts of viewing/accessing sexually explicit images of minors and, on 17 December 2019, charged with 11 counts of viewing/accessing sexually explicit images of minors.
In a deal, Peterson pleaded, guilty, 30 January 2020, to two counts of willfully possessing or accessing child sexually exploitative material with the other 12 charges dropped. He was sentenced, 25 June 2020, to 90 days in jail followed by 10 years of probation. His jail sentence is “interim” and he may serve in “increments of one to seven days at the community transition center.” He must register as a sex offender. Peterson was free on $20,000 bond during the legal process.
Peterson was trading in CSEM including of children two-years-old and younger.
At UI Peterson served as Special Assistant Government Relations to seven university presidents and on the School of Journalism and Mass Media’s advisory board. He served on the Friends of Idaho Public Television board and Idaho Statesman’s editorial board. He had been Executive Director of the Association of Idaho Cities and served with Idaho Humanities Council. He also served on U.S. Senator Frank Church’s staff, former Gov. Butch Otter’s transition team and was budget director for former Govs. John Evans and Cecil Andrus. UI removed Peterson from the Journalism and Mass Media Advisory Board upon his arrest. He has no other affiliation with the university. Peterson employed with the university for 22 years.
(162) Henry Kamen, 80-year-old Visiting Professor of Spanish History, University of Chicago,
was indicted, 14 February 2017, on federal child pornography charges. As of June 2021, no further action has occurd on Kamen’s case. It appears Kamen is no longer in the US.
Information regarding Kamen’s case may be sent to Pamela Lightsey US Attorneys’ Office (478–621–2603).
Previously, Kamen had been a Visiting Professor at University of Wisconsin — Madison.
University Central Florida
(163) Laszlo Marosi, 59-year-old Associate Professor of Music University of Central Florida (UCF),
was arrested, 18 March 2020, on one state-level charge of obscene communication with a child/child exploitation. He pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful use of a two-way communication device and was sentenced, 11 February 2021, to three years probation.
Marosi was arrested at a Walmart in Winter Springs, Florida when he traveled to meet a child — in reality an undercover investigator. He had contacted the “child” on Grindr.
The university placed Marosi on paid administrative leave after his arrest and terminated Marosi on 1 August 2020.
UCF awarded Marosi a Research Incentive Award (2013). He has been employed at UCF since 2003. Over the years Marois worked with many youth orchestras and symphonies in: Sao Paulo, Brazil; Sydney and New South Wales, Australia; Debrecen, Hungary; Lima, Perú; San Jose, Costa Rica; Pereira, Colombia; Johannesburg, South Africa; Enschede, Netherlands; Stuttgart, Germany; Minot, North Dakota.
(164) Michael Shawn Reichert, 37-year-old Assistant Professor Political Science, University Central Florida (UCF),
was arrested, 30 May 2007, on 138 state-level child pornography possession charges. On 21 February 2011, all charges were nolle prosequi.
Reichert was caught by UCF’s IT staff. He was arrested on campus. According to campus police, Reichert possessed more than 100 CSEM images/videos on his UCF computer including of a 9-year-old child.
UCF placed Reichert on administrative leave after his arrest and terminated him on 9 October 2007. He had been employed at UCF since 2002. He is currently a Research Coordinator in the office Institutional Effectiveness at Central Washington University (CWU) where his wife, Dr. Bernadette Jungblut, is an Associate Provost.
(165) John Stewart Russell, 59-year-old Adjunct Assistant Professor, City College of New York (CCNY),
was arrested, 30 July 2020, on two state-level counts of sexual conduct against a child and endangering the welfare of a child.
Russell has been charged with the sex abuse of a 13-year-old girl — the child of Russell’s adult friends — since she was 9-years-old. The victim recently reported the abuse to authorities.
His alleged grooming process is targeting Asian children by befriending their parents. Investigators suspect there may be more victims and are asking anyone with information to come forward.
Russsell’s employement at City College of New York (CCNY) ended prior to his date of arrest. He was previously arrested in Vermont, 2000, for forcibly touching a 15-year-old girl he was employed to babysit. Russell is a married father of two young boys. His Ph.D. is in biomedical engineering from Dartmouth College. He was held on $150,000 bail with his next court date is set for 27 October 2020.
Tips — NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline 1–800–577-TIPS (8477)/Spanish 1–888–57-PISTA (74782) — Crime Stoppers website & Twitter: @NYPDTips.
(166) Stephen Pulsford, 61-year-old Chair of the English Department, Berea College,
was arrested, 4 August 2020, on one count of child pornography distribution.
He was released on bond and found dead, 15 August 2020, in his home with no apparent “foul play” according to investigators.
Toxicology tests were ordered after his death.
_______________________________________________________________
Staff
(167) Edward Joseph Michaels, 67-year-old Counseling Center Director University of Pittsburgh (Pitt),
was arrested, 24 May 2017, on child pornography charges. He pleaded guilty, 6 June 2018, to possession and child sex abuse and was sentenced to two years of probation. He had been free on non-monetary bond during the legal process.
Michaels was caught on a tip, reported to police, regarding photographs of young girls in his home.
The university placed Michaels on leave after his arrest and terminated his employment in June 2017. He had been employed at Pitt since 2015, and was, previously, a clinical psychologist at Children’s Memorial Hospital at Northwestern University for 12 years. Michaels surrendered, 22 August 2017, his Pennsylvania psychologist license. Michigan (2018) and Illinois (2017) suspended his licenses. He is a registered sex offender in Pennsylvania.
(168) Adam Zydney, 26-year-old (former) Center for Talented Youth Staff Johns Hopkins University,
was arrested on 31 August 2015, on 836 felony child pornography charges. Zydney appealed to Superior Court, 26 August 2016, to dismiss all charges.
By April 2018, all charges were gdropped due to alleged misconduct of the previous DA involved in the case. Zydney had over CSEM 500 files and told investigators he had been trading in child sex abuse since he was a teenager. He was free on $15,000 unsecured bail throughout the legal process.
Johns Hopkins Talented Youth Program is a summer camp/program for K-12 grade children. Zydney was employed with the program from 2010–2014. He was a Penn State graduate student in the math department. He is the son of school board member Laurel Zydney and Andrew Zydney, a Distinguished Professor at Penn State.
(169) Ryan K. Gavigan, 28-year-old Assistant Residence Director and Student Conduct Advisor Office of Students Rights and Responsibilities Syracuse University,
was arrested, 20 December 2017, on child pornography charges.
Gavigan pleaded guilty, 30 January 2019, and was sentenced, 28 February 2019, to 10 years probation, with no jail, and must register as a sex offender.
Syracuse University suspended Gavigan upon news of his arrest. He is no longer employed at the university. His undergraduate degree is from Georgetown University
________
(170) Andre Rudolph Barbins, a 45-year-old swimming coach at St. Mary’s College in Maryland,
was arrested, 12 February 2016, and charged with one count per sexual solicitation of a minor and providing obscene material to a minor.
He pleaded guilty, 26 January 2017, and was sentenced, 6 July 2017, to 6 years in federal prison followed by 15 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
Barbins was caught, 19 October 2015, when the Knox County Sheriff’s Department (Illinois) received a tip about the sexual abuse of a 12-year-old child Barbins was exploiting.
Barbins had been St. Mary’s head swim coach for 18 years. The college terminated his employment upon news of his arrest.
(171) Jon Timothy Riveire, Jr., 32-year-old Assistant Director Student Conduct, Office of Student, Ethics Indiana University,
was arrested, 12 May 2015, and charged with six child pornography counts. He pleaded guilty to one possession count, November 2016, with the other charges dropped.
He was sentenced, 27 February 2017, to 1 years home arrest followed by 1.5 years probation and must register as sex offender until 2027. Although prohibited from contact with children under 16 years old, the court provided an exception to his two young children; one of whom is a toddler.
Riveire was trading in CSEM, including of children as young as three-years-old on his university computer. He was responsible for hearing cases of student misconduct in residence halls. The university terminated his employment upon his arrest.
(172) Benjamin Thomas Felker, 28-year-old Lab Associate, Biology Department, Wheaton College (Illinois),
was arrested, September 2016, and charged with four child pornography possession charges. In a plea deal, he pleaded guilty to one count and was sentenced, 15 May 2018, to four years in prison and a life-time on the sex offender registry.
Felker had “dozens of videos and about 1,500 images depicting child pornography” at the time of his arrest including of children as young as seven-years-old.
Wheaton College placed Felker on unpaid leave and later terminated him. College President Philip Ryken released a statement -“As a Christian community, Wheaton College fundamentally opposes the production and use of pornography, especially child pornography, which by its very nature exploits and victimizes the most vulnerable.”
(173) Dennis Rae Ledbetter, 46-year-old Public Safety Lieutenant, Auburn University,
was arrested, 2 December 2016, on three federal counts of child pornography possession.
In a deal, Ledbetter pleaded guilty, 13 December 2017, to one charge per, receipt and possession, and was sentenced to 6.5 years in federal prision per count concurrently followed by 5 years of supervised release per count concurrently. Ledbetter must register as a sex offender. He was free on $90,000 bond throughout the legal process.
At the time of his arrest, Ledbetter possessed more than 800 CSEM images on his university computer. He also had 7 thumb drives in his university office with over, 5,500 images and 111 videos of child sex abuse. The university placed Ledbetter on leave after his arrest. Ledbetter also taught Rape Aggression Defense Classes to women at Auburn.
(174) Paul Bradley Meagher, 43-year-old Campus Police Officer, University of North Dakota (UND),
was arrested, 4 November 2015, on 10 state-level child pornography counts, later dropped in lieu of federal charges.
Meagher pleaded guilty to one count per of possession and receipt and was sentenced, 6 February 2017, to ten years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $16,300 in victim restitution and must register as a sex offender.
At the time of his arrest Meagher had more than 100,000 images/videos of children being raped and tortured including the rape of a four year old child. Meagher worked at the Grand Forks Juvenile Detention Center before his university employment. UND placed Meagher on leave after his arrest and then terminated him.
(175) Trevor Theron Long, a 29-year-old South Florida State College information technology (IT)
employee was arrested, 12 May 2014, on 51 counts of child pornography possession and arrested, a second time while in jail, 19 February 2015, and charged with an additional 42 counts bringing total charges to one count of possession of obscene materials and 92 counts of transmission of obscene materials. His bond had been set at $5,000 per count and he was held in custody during the legal process. Long pleaded guilty to twenty possession charges, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, 14 December 2015, to eight years in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release for count one and five years of supervised release for counts four-twenty (concurrent with each other and consecutive with count one) and must register as a sex offender.
On 29 May 2021, Long, released from prison and on supervised release, was arrested again on six new CSEM counts; three possession with intent to promote and three counts of using a two way communication device for a felony. Long admitted to watching a pre-teen neighbor child and having fantasies about her. He pleaded not guilty and, as of June 2021, is in custody with no bond for at least three of the charges. Both arrest records document Long trading in the rape and torture of children “ages 4 to 10, either performing sex acts or having sex acts performed on them.”
South Florida State College terminated Long’s employment for violating college policy regarding use of campus technology. He had been using his South Florida State College computer to trade in child sex abuse material (CSEM). He is a registered sex offender in Florida.
(176) David M. Linnehan, a 39-year-old information technology (IT) staff at Springfield College,
was arrested, 1 April 2013, on 11 state-level child pornography possession charges, 13 counts of unauthorized access to a computer system, eight counts of distributing material showing a child in the nude, two counts of posing a child in the nude and single counts of possessing a firearm without a firearm identification card, improper storage of a firearm and attempting to commit a crime.
He was indicted, 16 January 2014, on 37 counts and pleaded guilty, 3 February 2015, to 35 charges (in two counties where he lived and worked — Granby & Springfield) and was sentenced, 24 February 2015, to 8–10 years in prison, followed by five years probation and ordered to pay $3,900 in victim restitution. He was free, prior to sentencing, on $25,000 bail. He must registed as a sex offender.
In addition to possessing more than one million CSEM videos/images, Linnehan also illegally access student computers and email accounts and stole private photographs. Linnehan was caught when Amanda Lambert, a mother in California, was caught producing and distributing child sex abuse images/videos of her own children. The mother, Lambert, pleaded guilty 6 October 2014 to sexual exploitation of a child and distributing child pornography and was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison. Linnehan had been trading CSEM images with Lambert, including those of Lambert’s own 4 and 6-year- old daughters.
Springfield College placed Linnehan on administrative leave on 2 April 2013, and terminated his employed on 5 April 2013. Linnehan is the father of a 4- year-old boy and he was not restricted access, after he leaves prison, to his son. Linnehan’s father is a police officer in Hampshire County.
(177) Daniel P. Shaw, 47-year-old information technology (IT) staff for Purdue University,
was arrested, 23 September 2014, and charged with two felony counts of possession of child pornography and a felony count of child exploitation.
Shaw pleaded guilty, 27 January 2015, to possession and was sentenced, 24 April 2015, to six months in state jail followed by 18 months on supervised probation and home detention and must register as a sex offender.
Shaw had been trading in videos/images of children in “nude or in states of undress in sexually suggestive poses, engaged in sexual activity or being subjected to sadomasochistic sexual abuse.” He was released on $500 cash bond plus $5,000 surety. He had been employed at Purdue since 2009. The university said he had left his position, in 2013, for “personnel reasons.” Although Shaw was not arrested until 2014, the investigation started in 2013. Shaw is a registered sex offender in Indiana.
(178) Steven Germinder, a 58-year-old Finance Reconciliation Specialist University of Michigan,
was arrested on child pornography charges and indicted, 11 March 2015, on one count each distribution, receipt and possession. He was convicted in a jury trial and sentenced, 8 January 2016, to 14 years in federal prison. Germinder remained in custody pending trial.
Germinder was trading in CSEM, including bestiality and the rape of an infant, from his university computer. He was caught when a security officer alerted university police. Upon his arrest, investigators seized some 64 DVDs from his home. An initial forensic exam detailed 20,000 images “which represented only a small portion of the image files.” An estimated 3,000 were CSEM. A 12 page spreadsheet listed the child sex abuse he was trading.
The university terminated his employment in 2014, prior to his arrest and indictment, when the university was first alerted and opened an investigation.
(179) Jeffrey Shira, a 60-year-old information technology (IT) employee with Ohio University,
was arrested, 18 February 2015, and was originally charged with ten counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor. After a forensic examination of his electronics, Shira was indicted on 122 counts, July 2015, and died of an apparent suicide the next day.
Investigators seized a “large amount of child pornography” from his home. Shira was caught when he mistakenly left two flash drives containing child sex abuse images/videos in a donation he gave to a local church. Upon his arrest, Ohio University placed Shira on paid administrative leave. He is no longer employed at the university due to his apparent suicide in July 2015. The criminal case was also closed as a result of Shira’s death.
(180) Charles Hitlin, 42-year-old Head of Information Technology (IT) at University of North Carolina
was arrested, November 2012, and charged, 18 February 2013, with 47 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor among other charges including a firearm in his campus office.
In a deal, Hitlin pleaded guilty to nine counts of second degree sex exploitation of a minor, all other charges were dismissed, and was sentenced, 28 May 2014, to 15–27 months in prison, all suspended, three years probation and 10 years registered as a sex offender.
Hitlin was caught using his university computer to trade CSEM on child sex traficking site (chat.motherless.com). He also used his university email hitlin@unc.edu to distribute child sex abuse images. His wife, Amy Hitlin was Senior Assistant Director of University Career Services for UNC’ School of Public Health. Hitlin posed on-line as his wife and “alluded to sexual acts and intercourse with minors,” said “liked to have sexual relations with 10 or more individuals at a time, including “neighbors and coworkers” and said “her” husband, who was an IT manager on campus, “watched the interactions.” “She” also said “sometimes the neighborhood kids would come over to have sex… a 15-year-old boy brought his 12-year-old brother.” His wife was not charged.
Hitlin’s record show the offenses dated back to 2009. UNC employed Hitlin from 2006, until his November 2012, arrest. Hitlin is a registered sex offender in North Carolina until 2024. He now runs a life-coaching business.
(181) Stan Wright, a 58-year-old media employee at Northern Michigan University (NMU),
was arrested, 26 September 2017, on eight counts of child pornography related charges. He pleaded guilty to three charges, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, 5 January 2018, to 150 days in jail with a credit of 101 days served followed by 60 months of probation.
Wright was trading in child rape on his university computer. At his court hearing, he said, “I spent my entire adult life in the service of others…. The majority of that time has been in the service of young people as either a counselor, mentor, teacher or guide.” In 2007, NMU awarded Wright their Excellence in Service Award. His employment with NMU ended in 2016, after the investigation started.
Wright is a registered sex offender.
(182) Randal Ray Schmidt, 52-year-old Maintenance Supervisor, Ball State University,
was arrested, 13 April 2016, on eight charges— seven counts of possession of child pornography, and one count obstruction of justice.
In a deal, Schmidt pleaded guilty to two possession counts, with the other charges dorpped. and was sentenced, 27 September 2017, to nearly 3 years jail time — entirely suspended and must register as sex offender until September 2027
Ball State campus police arrested Schmidt after a “routine review of information security” alerted administrators that a campus computer was accessing a site with “suspicious content.” Schmidt was suspended and barred from campus. He had been employed with Ball State for 20-years and subsequently “voluntarily” terminated his employment. He was held on $175,000 bond after his arrest, reduced to $25,000, which he posted.
(183) Braden Vale Jay Robinson, 24-year-old Residence Hall Director, Ball State University,
was arrested, 1 October 2018, and charged, February 2019, on eight child pornography possession counts. Robinson pleaded guilty to two counts of possession, with the other charges dropped and was sentenced, 5 May 2021, to four years in jail, entirely suspended, four years of supervised probation and ten years on the sex offender registry. Robinson had been free $40,000 bail pending the legal process.
Robinson was trafficking in CSEM from Ball State campus, including of children as young as 4-years-old. Ball State suspended Robinson upon his arrest and later terminated his employment. Robinson was researching and publishing on at-risk students including — “Work in Progress: The Impact of a Self-Guided Assessment Tool on Success and Retention of At-Risk Students.” He was previously enrolled as a student at Valencia Community College and won several water polo awards including: GHS Coach’s Award (2010, 2011).
(184) Pejman Kamkarian, Information Technology (IT) Staff, Southern Illinois University,
was arrested and indicted, 5 March 2019, on one federal child pornography charge and pleaded not guilty, 8 March 2019.
He was free on $10,000 bond pending his guilty plea. As of 5 August 2020, he remains in federal custody awaiting sentencing.
The university placed Kamkarian on leave, after his arrest, and later terminated his employment.
(185) Gregory D. Cantrell, 61-year-old Associate Director, Environmental Health & Safety, Princeton
University, was arrested, 5 November 2018, on one child pornography possession charge. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to one year probation. Cantrell was free on monitored release during the legal process.
Cantrell was caught in law enforcement’s “Operation Trading Post” investigation
Princeton placed him on unpaid administrative leave after his arrest and he retired — January 2019, after 28 years of employment at Princeton.
(186) David Scott Delaney, 28-year-old Police Officer, Red Rocks Community College,
was arrested, 23 September 2018, on one child sexual exploitation charge related to child pornography. His state charges were dismissed, July 209, in lieu of federal charges.
Delaney was indicted on one federal charge and sentenced, 12 February 2020, to 10 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release, $3,000 in restitution and must register as a sex offender.
Delaney had been free on $60,000 bond during the legal process.
Red Rocks Community College placed Delaney on administrative leave and later terminated him. He was employed with the college nearly a year.
(187) David Rex Briggs, 44-year-old Financial Operations Staff, University of Nebraska-Lincoln,
was arrested, 25 August, 2004, on three counts of child pornography possession and one count of “generating” child pornography and sentenced, 25 April 2005, to five years probation (no jail time) per each of three counts (the fourth count was dropped in a plea deal) served concurrently.
He was also ordered to register as a sex offender. Briggs was trading in child rape on his university computer and was arrested by campus police. Briggs had been employed with the university since 2002. He was terminated after his arrest. Briggs is a father of four children and is currently listed as a project director for House For New Life: Christians by our Love.
(188) Samuel E. LaSala, 47-year-old Systems Developer/Directory Manager, Montclair University,
was arrested on federal child pornography charges and pleaded guilty on 10 October 2018. He was sentenced 22 February 2019, to five years in federal jail followed by 5 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
At the time of his arrest, LaSala possessed over 100 child sex abuse videos including pre-teen hard core (PTHC). LaSala was trading in the rape of children as young as 3-years-old.
The university suspended LaSala upon his arrest and he later resigned. Montclair also opened and their owninvestigation and reported no evidence of LaSala committing the crimes with university property or on campus.
LaSala was free on bond pending his conviction.
(189) George Wright Sessen, 42-year-old Research Technologist, Center for Empirical Research,
School of Law, Washington University (St. Louis) was arrested, 14 May 2019, and charged on two state-level child pornography, one per, possession and promotion. Sessen’s pleaded guilty and was sentenced, 25 August 2020, to seven years in jail. He had been held on $200,000 bond. Sessen was caught by an undercover law enforcement officer and arrested when he attempted to meet the undercover officer to engage in child sexual abuse.
In 2019, Washington University’s Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement gave Sessen their Ethics of Service Award.
Sessen was Committee Chair for Homeless Lunch Project at the First Unitarian Church of St Louis and Director of Street Outreach at St. Louis Homeless Winter Outreach.
Washington University suspended and barred Sessen from campus upon news of his arrest. He has been employed with the university since 2014. This is, at least, the second similar arrest at Washington University. Please see Justin Carroll, 67-year-old Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and interim Athletic Director in the professor section.
(190) Jay Lyle Dobberke, 63-year-old Physics Lab Tehcnician at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
(UWM), was charged, 26 April 2019, with 10 counts of state-level possession of child pornography.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty,14 November 2019, to one count, with the other nine dismissed, and was sentenced, 14 November 2019, to three years in jail followed by two years of supervised release.
Dobberke was trading in child rape from university computers. UWM reported that all employees undergo criminal background checks with newly instated additional reference checks design to determine if applicants have a “history of sexual violence.” Dobberke was terminated by UWM on 10 May 2019. He had been employed with UWM since 1992.
(191) Michael Scott Govig, 44-year-old Assistant Softball Coach, Creighton University,
was arrested, September 2007, on two federal child pornography possession and receipt charges, respectively. In a deal, Govig pleaded guilty to one charge and was sentenced, 15 August 2008, to five years in federal jail followed by five years of supervised release.
Govig had a paid account ($79.95 monthly) on a child sex abuse website called “Home Collection.” At the time of his arrest, he had hundreds of images/videos of child sex abuse including of children as young as six-years-old. He was previously an assistant softball coach at University of Kentucky and Papillion-La Vista High School where he was named girls softball coach of the year in 2002 and Nebraska Coach of the Year in 1997, 1999 and 2001. Creighton University terminated Govig upon his arrest.
Govig is a registered sex offender in Iowa and Nebraska.
(192) Matthew Yunho Chan, 34-year-old Associate Director for Diversity Initiatives, Virginia Polytechnic, Center for Earth & Environ Nanotech
Infrastructure, was arrested, 22 May 2019, on 22 child pornography charges.
In a deal, Chan pleaded guilty, 30 September 2019, to 11 felony counts of child pornography possession (with the other 11 charges dropped) and was sentenced to 11 years in jail entirely suspended except for six months followed by ten years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Chan was caught by the university IT department using his work computer to trade in child rape. University officials contacted police. Chan is no longer employed at Virginia Tech. He was free on $15,000 bond throughout the court process.
(193) Robert Marshall, 52-year-old Director of Campus Safety, Thomas Moore College,
was arrested, 27 January 2016, on 36 child pornography related charges and indicted on all on 36 counts.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty, August 2016, to two charges with the remaining charges dismissed and was sentenced, 30 October 2017, to 8.5 years in prison and life on the sex offender register.
Marshall was caught when his son reported to child sex abuse images/videos on Marshall’s home computer to local police. There was no evidence these crimes occured on campus.
Marshall was employed at Thomas Moore College since 1999 and Director of Campus Safety since 2003. The college terminated Marshall the day after his arrest and released a statement. Marshall had a previous criminal record when the college hired him including: reckless driving, operating under the influence (OUI) and theft.
(194) Ronald Godby, 53-year-old Police Lieutenant, Northwestern University,
was arrested, 1 February 2016, on three child pornography related counts — one count per manufacturing, possession and grooming. Godby was indicted, 21 April 2016. An additional three charges added, May 2016, after an forensic investigation of his electronics.
He pleaded guilty, 17 May 2017, to two possession charges, with the other charges dropped, and was sentenced, 6 June 2017, to four years in jail and lifetime on the sex offender register. His bail was $100,000.
Godby was caught when a high school teacher was told, by a student, about Godby’s behavior. The teacher reported to law enforcement. He volunteered as a photographer at Prospect High School and received a distinguished service award from Arlington Heights-based Township High School (2013) for community service. Godby used his “photography” and social media apps, like Snapchat and Facebook, to groom and sexually exploit and abuse children.
The university placed Godby on administrative leave, upon news of his arrest, and terminated him in April 2016. Godby is a retired US Marine and the author of, at least, three police-crime books.
He is a registered sex offender in Kentucky.
(195) Benjamin Gran, 37-year-old Computer Tech, Auburn Green River Community College
was charged, 4 June 2013, with child pornography possession and receipt. He pleaded guilty, September 2013, and was sentenced to two-years in federal jail sentence followed by life-time supervised release.
Gran was caught when investigators decrypted Robert Mikelson’s hard drive — arrested in Amsterdam on child exploitation charges. Gran was active in boylover.net and supported the movement to legitimize the sexual abuse of children. Gran participated in the Special Olympics.
The college placed Gran on paid leave throughout the court proceedings claiming union rules prevented unpaid leave or terminated. Washington Federation of State Employees Union however, said Gran could have been terminated when he pleaded guilty. In December 2017, Gran died in an unrelated Amtrak accident.
(196) Walter Johnson, 69-year-old Assistant Track Coach, Harvard University,
was arrested, April 2017, on two federal child pornography charges — one per possession and distribution. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 10 June 2019, to one possession charge, with other charge dropped, and was sentenced, 12 September 2019, to three years in federal jail followed by five years of supervised release.
Johnson was trading in child rape on Craigslist where he discussed raping cousins, masturbating to neighbor’s children and rape of young children.
Johnson coached the men’s and women’s track teams at Harvard for 24 years (1982–2006), was a graduate of Harvard and a special education teacher at Wellesley High School (2008–2015) and a track coach. Wellesley terminated Johnson upon his arrest. He was no longer employed with Harvard at the time of his arrest.
(197) Douglas Christian Perlitz, 40-year-old affiliated employee Fairfield University, Director Project Pierre Toussaint School & Residential Village for Street
children in Haiti (13th Street Intake Program/Village Pierre Toussaint) was arrested, 16 September 2009, and indicted, October 2009, on seven counts of traveling outside the United States with the intent to commit child sexual abuse and three counts of engaging in sexual conduct with minors in a foreign country.
In a deal, Perlitz pleaded guilty, 18 August 2010, to one count of “traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct” and was sentenced, 21 December 2010, to nearly 20 years in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release. He must register as a sex offender.
Perlitz sexually abused, including anal rape, at least 170 children, as young as eleven-years-old or younger, over a decade. Federal investigators found images of sex abuse of the children on Perlitz’s computer and, at least, one child was admitted to the hospital for injuries inflicted by being sodomized by Perlitz.
Fairfield University, in 2002, engaged Perlitz as their commencement speaker and awarded him an honorary doctor of laws degree for his “charity” work in Haiti. In 2005, Fairfield University gave Perlitz their Alumni Humanitarian Award. It is unclear if Fairfield University rescinded these awards.
Fairfield University Chaplain Paul E. Carrier brought Perlitz, as an undergraduate, to Haiti on university-sponsored student trip. Carrier established The Haiti Fund Inc., raising an estimated $2 million, using Fairfield University Campus Ministry, and deposited these funds into an account controlled by Perlitz — some of which paid for “sexual acts” with children. Carrier, reportedly, visited Haiti almost monthly and telephoned Perlitz near daily.
In 2006, Carrier took a one-year sabbatical from Fairfield University and went temporarily missing. The New England Province of Jesuits, later, cooperated with federal prosecutors revealing that Carrier was living at a Jesuit Center in Weston, MA. The university suspended Carrier in 2010. Although allegations of sexual abuse have been made against Carrier, he has not yet been charged with a crime. Carrier was employed at Fairfield University for some 20 years, teaching the Faith, Peace and Justice Program and coordinating Mission Volunteers and Global Outreach. Board members of The Haiti Fund included an attorney, Philip Allen Lacovara, representing the Catholic Church in attempts to prevent the release of clergy sex abuse documents.
In 2010, Fairfield University said it planned to re-open the school in Haiti. In 2013, a $12 million (USD) civil suit was settled for 24 victims in Haiti and in January 2019, Fairfield University, along with affiliated groups, settled a second $61 million (USD) case to an additional 133 child survivors in Haiti.
(198) Michael Sondheimer, 59-year-old UCLA Associate Athletic Director of Academic Admissions
On-Campus Recruiting, was arrested, 27 February 2013, on one child pornography possession charge. In a deal, he pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of possession and was sentenced, 21 July 2014, to three years probation and lifetime on the sex offender registry.
Sondheimer was caught when Operation Riptide, a site dedicated to exposing predators attempting to sexually exploit and abuse children, exposed his on-line postings. He was engaged in child sex trafficking on his work computer. UCLA placed Sondheimer on indefinite leave, 3 June 2013, and later allowed him to resign. He had been employed at UCLA for 36 years. Previously, he was UCLA’s Women’s Athletics Promotion Director and was a member of the UCLA Communications Board — overseeing UCLA Student Media and student-run publications. In 2000, the America Volleyball Coaches Association awarded Sondheimer the Grant Burger Media Award. In 1993, he was indicted into the So. Cal. Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Sondheimer now runs MJS Sports Consulting a “private college and sports consulting” helping high school students with their college applications and recruiting process” focused especially for children in the Autism spectrum. Southern California Indoor Volleyball Hall of Fame cites Sondheimer as their Executive Director.
(199) Kyle Patrick Loughlin, 21-year-old Children’s Center Staffer, Bridgewater State University (BSU),
was arrested, 1 April 2015, on two counts of rape of a child and three counts of aggravated indecent assault, and assault and battery of a child under 14. He pleaded guilty to all charges (including an additional count of larceny) and was sentenced, 24 March 2017, to 7.5 years in jail followed by ten years of supervised release.
Loughlin was caught when one of the children asked his mother “to tickle his bottom” like Loughlin does and the mother reported. During a search of Loughlin’s dorm room, on campus, police seized “more than 100 pairs of children’s underwear and diapers.” The children Loughlin abused were 4 and 5 years old. Loughlin was studying early childhood education at Bridgewater and had been a camp counselor at the MetroWest YMCA’s Hopkinton Summer Camp 2010- 2014.
Parents filed a federal lawsuit against BSU, the state, and daycare director, Judith Ritacco, for failing to action to immediately remove Loughlin, who was allowed to remain in the on-campus daycare for three weeks after the first report of sexual assault — during which time he continued to sexually abuse children.
Loughlin is a registered sex offender.
(200) Judith Ritacco, 53-year-old Director of the Children’s Center, Bridgewater State University,
was arrested, April 2015, and sentenced, September 2017, to three years probation on admission to charges of reckless endangerment of a child, failing to report suspected child abuse as a mandated reporter and witness intimidation.
She had ignored “multiple warnings” Loughlin was abusing children at the center, including from a teacher and a parent reporting that Loughlin was “zeroing in on young boys, rubbing the upper thigh of a child, and even tickling his buttocks.” After Loughlin’s arrest the university first suspended her and then, later, terminated her employment.
Local journalists and parents accused the university and the State’s AG Maura Healey of a cover-up in refusing to release school records/emails, requesting a $60,000 fee to release records/emails and attempting to dismiss the lawsuit. Superior Court Judge Dennis J. Curran moved to protect the children asking, “Who speaks for the children in this case? … Not the Attorney General’s office, charged with protecting the public safety, not a few university administrators who seem to have forgotten the original purpose of an educational institution: to seek the truth. Instead, we only see bureaucrats scurrying to protect themselves.”
Parents filed a civil suit against the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Ritacco, allowed to proceed in 2018, and a Title IX complaint against the university in 2017. In 2014, Bridgewater adopted a “Policy to Protect Minors and Prevent Abuse banning the employment of Level 2 and Level 3 sex offenders and conducting criminal and sex-offender background checks for all newly hired employees (full-time, part-time and temporary) volunteers, students, vendors, relevant current employees and external groups . Bridgewater State University closed the campus childcare center as a result of these arrests, in 2017. Bridgewater is the largest public state university, outside of the University of Massachusetts system, in Massachusetts.
Pennsylvania State University (PSU aka Penn State)
(201) Gerald Arthur Sandusky, 75-year-old Assistant Football Coach, Pennsylvania State University (PSU),
was charged, 5 November 2011, and with 40 counts of child sexual abuse including of children under ten-years-old. He was free on a $100,000 bond and was arrested again, 7 December 2011, on 12 additional child sex abuse charges and released on $250,000 bail and “monitored house arrest.”
Sandusky was found guilty, 22 June 2012, on 45 counts of child sexual molestation, and sentenced, 9 October 2012, to 30 to 60 years in prison. On 22 November 2019, he was re-sentenced to 30–60 years in prison. On 28 January 2020, Sandusky’s bid to have his sentence reduced was rejected.
Sandusky retired from Penn State in June 1999 after serving as coach for 32 years and received emeritus status. Penn State later revoked his emeritus status. On 23 December 2015, Penn State said Sandusky would receive $211,000 in back payments and his retirement payments, of $4,900 monthly, would resume.
Sandusky founded, in 1977, The Second Mile as a boys foster home and “community” program for at-risk youth. He used Second Mile as a means to prey on and abuse vulnerable boys. He also abused children on campus at Penn State. As of 9 January 2018, Penn State’s settlement awards to Sandusky’s victims was over $109 million. In November 2016, the Department of Education fined Penn State $2.4 million for Clery Act violations- the largest in the history of the Clery Act. NCAA fined Penn State $60 million and banned PSU for four years, ordered the university to vacate all wins from 1998–2011 and forfeit 20 football scholarships a year for four seasons. The Big Ten Conference ruled Penn State’s share of bowl revenues for four seasons, some $13 million, be donated to charities working to prevent child abuse.
Penn State’s President, Vice President and Athletic Director were sentenced for failing to report child sexual abuse allegations committed by Sandusky.
Graham Basil Spanier, 68-year-old, President - Penn State, was convicted of one count of child endangerment for failing to report allegations of Sandusky’s child abuse to authorities, and was sentenced, 2 June 2017, to four to 12 months, with the first two in jail and the rest under house arrest. Spanier appealed and the conviction was overturned, 30 April 2019. The prosecution appealed the reversal and the case remains on appeal, as of June 2020, with the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Spanier’s sentence is on hold while the case is under appeal. Although Spanier was removed as president, by Penn State Board, due to his role in the Sandusky case, he remains a tenured professor of human development and family studies - on paid administrative leave.
Tim Curley, 63-year-old, Athletic Director - Penn State, pleaded guilty to child endangerment and was sentenced, 2 June 2017, to seven to 23 months with three months in jail and the rest under house arrest.
Gary Schultz, 67-year-old, Vice President — Penn State, pleaded guilty to child endangerment and was sentenced, 2 June 2017, to six to 23 months with two months in jail and the rest under house arrest.
(202) Jeremy Cole Whorley, 29-year-old Accountant, Liberty University,
was arrested, 10 July 2018, on ten child pornography charges including of children as young as six-year-old.
Whorley pleaded an “Alford plea” (not an admission of guilt but acknowledgement there is sufficient evidence for a conviction) to all ten charges and was sentenced, 23 January 2019, to four year in jail followed by two years of supervised release.
Liberty suspended Whorley, July 2018, after his arrest and later terminated him. Whorley is registered sex offender in Virginia.
(203) Luis Morales, 60-year-old janitor, Saint Mary’s College (Indiana),
was arrested, 5 February 2016, and charged with nine felony child pornography possession counts.
In a deal, he pleaded guilty, 13 July 2016, to seven counts, with two counts dismissed, and was sentenced, 10 August 2016, to four and half years in jail followed by seven years of probation and must register as a sex offender.
Morales was trading in child rape at work, using the college’s wi-fi network. He was suspended without pay upon his arrest and, by 22 February 2016, was terminated. At the time of his arrest, investigators found more than 100,000 images/videos of child sex abuse in Morales’ possession. Morales had been held on $50,000 bond throughout the process.
(204) Joel T. Archambault, 28-year-old Deputy Police Chief, State University of New York (SUNY) Albany,
was arrested, 16 October 2019, on two charges, one each, of promotion and possession of sexual performance by a child.
SUNY opened an internal investigation and suspended Archambault pending the outcome of the criminal case. SUNY will not report if this suspension is with or without pay.
Archambault received a SUNY Police Chiefs Association New York State University Police Award (2018) and a Police Benevolent Association of New York State (2016) award. Archambault was also a part-time member of the Whitehall Police Department.
As of August 2020 the case is still pending and a FIOA request for records was denied due to the pending legal process.
(205) Jason Noel Lingerfelt, 47-year-old Police Officer & Assistant Professor of Military Science, Univeristy of North Georgia (UNG),
was arrested, 27 November 2019, on four counts of enticing a child on-line.
Lingerfelt had been employed with UNG since March 2014 — first as Assistant Professor of Military Science/Senior Military Science Instructor (March 2014-May 2017) and then, from May 2017, as a campus police officer until his arrest. Lingerfelt was awarded New Police Officer of the Year March 2019. The university allowed him to resign on the day of his arrest. Asecurelife ranks UNG as fourth safest campus in America. Lingerfelt is a retired Army veteran.
(206) Robert Andrew Parsons, 37-year-old Police Office, Ohio University (OU),
was indicted, 13 March 2006, on 13 criminal counts related to child sex abuse. He pleaded no contest, July 2006, to one count of unlawful contact with a minor and sentenced, 28 November 2006, to six months in jail. Parsons was allowed to delay his jail sentenced until his appeal was process was complete.
One of Parson’s victims filed a $10 million lawsuit, October 2019, against OU saying the university “knew one of its police officers” was suspected of child sexual abuse, as far back as 2001, took no action and allowed Parsons to represent OU at “career day” at a local high school where he targeted and groomed a teenage girl he later raped in locked university buildings and in his police cruiser “while in uniform” and at work. This is the third civil suit filed against the university by victims of Parson.
Athens County Department of Children’s Services received several reports about Parson related to child sex abuse and shared these with Ohio University in 2000. In 2005 a teenage girl reported Parsons and the resulting investigation found “at least four potential victims.” The university terminated Parsons in February 2006.
(207) Mark George Brittan, 40-year-old Staffer, Accessibility Compliance Center & Education Support Services for Disabled Students,
Oakland Community College, was arrested, 19 April 2016, by campus police. Charges were not brought due to his subsequent suicide on 4 May 2016.
Brittan was caught trading in child rape in the college computer lab. At the time, he was already under investigation “for inappropriate use of technology.” The college placed Brittan on a leave of absence and banned him from all five campuses. Brittan had been rehired by Oakland Community College after his previous, March 2013, child pornography conviction.
In 2012, Brittan was a substitute teacher in Van Dyke Public Schools. A seven-year-old student told her parents Brittan was taking pictures of her. Parents contacted the school and law enforcement. A criminal investigation was opened by police and child sex abuse images/videos were found on Brittan’s computer. Brittan pleaded guilty to child pornography charges and was sentenced, April 2013, to seven months in jail and five years’ probation. Brittan was a registered sex offender.
(208) David Goodwin Watson, 62-year-old Director of Cultural Events, Pace University,
was arrested, 16 November 2010, on promoting sexual performance by a child and possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child.
Watson pleaded guilty, 12 April 2011, to both counts and was sentenced, 20 September 2011, to 10 years probation and must register as a sex offender. He was free on $25,000 bail throughout the legal process.
Watson was caught by law enforcement when he put an ad on Craigslist seeking a “nubile girl” and traveled to meet a child for the purposes of sexual abuse. The “child” was an undercover law enforcement officer. At the time of his arrest Watson also possessed images of child sex abuse.
Upon his arrest, Pace University placed Watson on administrative “pending the outcome of the legal proceedings.” Watson had been employed with the university for nearly eight years. He is no longer employed at Pace University. Previously, Watson directed the Emelin Theater in Mamaroneck, 1994–1998, where he “expanded children’s programming and activities.” He is a graduate of Columbia and Yale Universities. His wife, Cynthia Shoss, is a New York lawyer. Watson is a registered sex offender in New York.
This is, at least, the second arrest of a Pace University employee on similar charges. The following entry details Scott Lane’s arrest.
(209) Scott Lane, 34-year-old, Executive Director of Donor Relations & Fundraising, Pace University,
was arrested, 12 April 2016, on multiple child pornography and sexual exploitation charges. He was indicted, May 2016, pleaded guilty, 11 January 2018, to six child pornography related counts. Lane was sentenced, 1 April 2021, to 35 years in federal prison followed by 15 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $50,000 restitution to the victim and must register as a sex offender. Lane was held in federal custody without bail during the legal process.
Lane belong to a group of 12 male predators operating live-streaming child rape including of infants. His on-line name was “NYC Perv.” Other members of
the group used the name “BabyRaperSnuffer.” Lane was caught when Toronto Police located the group on-line and witnessed the rape of a six-year-old boy. Lane was engaged in directing the live-streamed rape of a six-year-old boy over the internet. Ordering to “Show more face,” as the child was raped and “F — — him.” Lane commented “Nice” and “Hot, man” while watching the child being raped and said “Let us hear the audio… Make out with him. Get him naked.”
Pace University terminated Lane and banned him from the university upon his arrest.
(210) Joseph Charles O’Neill, 31-year-old Daycare Staffer, University of Arkansas (UA),
was arrested, 4 March 2020, by campus police, and charged, 22 June 2020, on two counts of sexual indecency with a child and one count of rape by forcible fondling of children under three-years-old. O’Neill has been free on $50,000 bond. His next court date is scheduled for 20 November 2021.
O’Neill cites pervious employment at Piney Ridge Treatment Center in Fayetteville for patients ages 7 to 17 “who have sexually problematic behaviors in addition to a major mental illness” (2011–13); tutor/teacher in Vietnam (2017) and as a live-in nanny for children under 4-year olds in Tacoma, Washington (2018). O’Neill was suspended and banned from the university prior to his arrest and terminated, 4 March 2020, the day of his arrested. University staff called the state of Arkansas’ child abuse hotline and reported allegations of child sex abuse by O’Neill of a child enrolled in the campus daycare. UA issued a press statement and campus police sent a “safety warning” to the UA community detailing the investigation and asking parents to “speak with their children to determine if there are additional victims or any suspicious behavior.” O’Neill had been hired by UA in August 2019. This is, at least, the second UA employee arrested on similar charges. Travis Brown, an Assistant Professor of Graphic Design.
(211) John Paul Early, 36-year-old Senior Analyst Enterprise Systems -SCT Banner Student System, Lehigh University,
was arrested and charged, 6 August 2005, with indecent assault (6-year-old child) and later charged with child pornography possession.
Early assaulted a seven-year-old child at a Lehigh University colleague’s party. University police then searched Early’s work computer and located thousands of CSEM with over 126 different victims.
In a deal, Early pleaded guilty to two charges, one per, assault and possession and was sentenced, 11 September 2006, to five months probation for the assault charge and 27 April 2007, to nine months in jail on the child pornography charges. He was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and must register as a sex offender for life.
(212) Ronald John Sinacore, 55-year-old Associate Director, Office of Equity and Diversity Services,
George Mason University, was arrested, 19 October 2004, charged with one count each of child pornography possession and production.
On 8 June 2005, he was found guilty of production, possession and extortion and sentenced, 16 September 2005, to eight years in jail followed by six years of supervised release.
Sinacore had been filming his own sexual abuse of boys at home and in his campus office. He was caught when one of the teenage boys went to the police and said Sinacore threaten to use tapes to blackmail the child. George Mason placed Sinacore on leave, upon his arrest. He is no longer employed at George Mason. Sinacore is a registered sex offender in New York.
(213) Robert Jason Fain, 51-year-old IT staffer at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT),
was arrested, 26 August 2011, on child pornography charges. Fain was trading in CSEM on RIT’s networks/computers including children as young as five-years-old.
RIT notified the FBI and suspended Fain pending the investigation outcome. Fain, apparently, committed suicide, September 2011, 15 days after his criminal arraignment.
Fain was also a news producer, director and anchor on local TV and radio.
(214) Nathan Charles Fassnacht, 32 year-old Child Care Staff, Ohio State University (OSU)
was arrested, February 2014, on two pandering obscenity charges. On 10 April 2015, he was indicted on 19 related charges.
He pleaded guilty, August 2016, to seven counts - one sexual battery, three unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and three pandering obscenity involving minor. Fassnacht was sentenced, 27 October 2016, to 18 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
Fassnacht, repeatedly, raped a 5–6 year-old child at OSU’s on-campus child care centers (2000–2005) and produced child pornography of these assaults. Investigators discovered these crimes in 2014, when Fassnacht was arrested on child pornography charges. He possessed at least 5,600 CSEM images/videos including the rapes of the child in OSU’s child care centers. Fassnacht was employed at OSU’s Child Care Center Main Campus and Mansfield Campus (2002–2005) and the North Central State College Child Development Center (2000- 2001). In 2014, when he was arrested, he was employed at Buckeye Ranch — a residential treatment center for troubled youth.
OSU released a statement asking anyone with additional information to contact OSU police and offered support and counseling to anyone impacted by Fassnacht’s on-campus crimes. OSU also contacted and alerted parents whose children had been enrolled in the child care centers at that time inviting them to a private meeting on campus with police and representatives from Paesidium — a nationally recognized leader in preventing and responding to incidents of child sexual abuse.
(215) Brent Martin, 31-year-old Assistant Director Daycare, Butler Community College,
was arrested, 5 May 2020, on one aggravated indecent liberties with a child charge, reportedly, at EduCare Daycare Center on campus. Martin pleaded guilty, 11 September 2020, and was sentenced 6 November 2020, to five years in jail followed by a life-time of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
The college placed Martin on leave without pay after his arrest. He is no longer employed at the college. Martin had been employed at Butler since 2013. In June 2020, the college announced the closing of the day care center.
Martin was also “involved in multiple community organizations” providing access to young and disabled children including: President of the local Early Childhood Organization; Kansas Association for the Education of Young Children board member; Assistant Preschool Teacher at Child Start (2012); Special Education Paraprofessional School District USD 389 (2019–2012); Head Start - a US government run program (DHHS) for low-income families; Children’s Director Worship Hope Covenant Church; and maintains a blog on pre-school education. Martin writes, on his blog, “once I started working with the 3–5 year olds, my passion was found!”
(216) Tyler Gene Liddle, 32-year-old former Idaho State University finance employee,
was arrested, 22 July 2020, on five child sexual exploitation charges. In a deal, he pleaded guilty, November 2020, to one distribution charge and one accessing charge with other charges dropped and was sentenced, 22 February 2021, to six years in jail with the potential of up to 20 years in jail, a $2,500 and must register as a sex offender.
Liddle, reportedly, possessed CSEM material, including of children as young as nine-years-old, upon his arrest, and had over 3,000 images/videos of child sexual abuse. At the time, Liddle was under 14-years of felony probation for a guilty plea of embezzling $116,000 from Idaho State University in his capacity as a financial technician in the Student Involvement Center. His bail had been set at $75,000.
(217) William Aaron Doty, 33-year-old Sports Information Director, Malone University,
was arrested, 21 July 2020, on child pornography charges. After an indictment, he pleaded guilty, 30 November 2020, to three counts of child sexual exploitation and one count of child pornography receipt. Doty was sentenced 27 April 2021 to 15 years in federal prison followed by 15 years of supervised release. He had been held in federal custody during the legal process.
Poised as a 15-year-old boy, Doty told investigators that “daily,” for at least four years, at work and home, he used Instagram, Tinder, Snapchat and Likee to exploit children as young as 8-years-old getting them to send him “naked” pictures and videos. Investigators found evidence of contact with at least 380 children. Doty told one of the victims “Ur the hottest 10 yr old ever.”
Malone University terminated Doty immediately after his arrest. He had been employed at Malone for four years.
(218) Hosea Taylor Watson III, 58-year-old Curator Paul W. Bryant Museum, University of Alabama
was arrested, 19 August 2020, on ten child pornography possession counts. His bond set at $300,000.
University of Alabama (UA) immediately terminated Watson, issued a no-trespass order and released a statement saying, “The University appreciates the work of local law enforcement teams and will cooperate with their investigations as needed.” Watson had been employed at UA for 28 years.
Watson is the author of Inside the Vault: The Paul W. Bryant Collection (2013); co-producer of award-winning Crimson Classics and Crimson Comments series on WVUA-TV and co-producer of a documentary, The Strip: Tuscaloosa’s Most Colorful Quarter Mile, about bars near campus. Watson also operated McSanta.com “Holiday fun page” website.
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Canada
(1) Benjamin Levin, 63 year old “celebrated professor” at University of Toronto
and former Deputy Minister of Education in Canada, was arrested, July 2013, and charged with 61 counts of producing and distributing child porn. On 29 Mary 2015, he was sentenced to three years in jail. He was free, under “the supervision” of his wife pending sentencing. Although Levin is Canadian, given his statue within the North American education community and the scope of his crimes, his case must be mentioned. Levin pleaded guilty to three counts in exchange for having the other charges dropped. He said, in on-line chats, he was interested in “normalizing the subject of sexual touching of children.”
Levin said “he wished he had a son but he’d nonetheless sexually abused a couple of boys as well as his own girls.” Levin “hoped his daughters would ‘share’ their own children (his grandchildren) with him.” He “further expressed his desire to have sexual intercourse with the three kids his chat-pal pretended to have and then introduced the woman, in cyberspace, to another person who apparently had sexual interest in children and, once all nicely interconnected, they discussed the sexual abuse of kids.”
Levin told one on-line mother, in reality an undercover investigator, he would “to “f — — all 3 (of her children) in front of you with your help … would they submit or would I need to tie them?”
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Lori Handrahan, Ph.D. can be contacted on her website www.LoriHandrahan.com
