4 Charged, Including 2 Juvenile Boys, In Possession Of Child Pornography In Howard County
COLUMBIA, Md. (WJZ) -- Howard County police announced that four people, including two juvenile boys, were charged with possession child pornography.
The months-long investigation began after police received numerous tips from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and Maryland Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) related to the sale of child pornography.
Police arrested two men and two boys in July in these crimes.
Nicholas David Gehringer, 29, of Sharp Road in Glenwood, is charged with four counts of possession of child pornography and 32-year-old Jawad Hyder Wagan, Tamar Drive in Columbia, is charged with 10 counts of child pornography.
Two boys from Laurel were also charged in this case. Police don't believe the suspects produced the child pornography or knew the victims.
Detectives remind parents to encourage their children to be safe online, especially with increased internet usage during the pandemic.
These excellent resources address several issues related to online safety: https://www.missingkids.org/netsmartz/resources and https://www.netsmartzkids.org. You can send tips to the NCMEC here: https://www.missingkids.org/gethelpnow/cybertipline.