A former Long Beach police officer was indicted on four counts of distributing and possessing child pornography, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Anthony Mark Brown, 56, was indicted on three counts of “distributing images of underage girls who were either naked or engaging in sex acts and one count of possessing child.”
In June, he was charged with three counts of distribution of child pornography, as well as one count of possession of child or youth pornography, the Long Beach Post News reports.
According to the indictment, in 2019 and 2020 Brown used a messaging app called MeWe to send explicit images of young girls.
Brown was ordered to not have “any unsupervised time with minors as a condition of remaining free on bond.”
Brown was a 27-year veteran police officer working for the Long Beach Police Department and the Long Beach Airport. He was arrested on Feb. 10.
According to the Long Beach police department, in May 2020 the department got a tip about a possible online crime against a child. Further investigation revealed the suspect to be Brown.
“When the actions of an individual employee erode the values of our organization and the public trust all of us have worked so hard to cultivate, they must be held accountable,” stated acting Chief of Police Wally Hebeish.
“Protecting children is one of our most sacred responsibilities, and the actions of this officer do not represent the professionalism and commitment that all of our employees show every day while protecting our community.”
If convicted, Brown could face up to 80 years in prison, according to the L.A. Times.