New Jersey fire chief arrested on state charges of sharing child pornography on fire station computers

TRENTON, N.J. — The chief of a New Jersey city fire department was arrested Wednesday on state charges that he used a computer at the fire station to download and share child pornography.

This arrest resulted from a joint investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the New Jersey Attorney General’s Division of Criminal Justice, with extensive assistance from the Haddon Township Police Department and the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office.

John Terruso, 44, of Marlton, New Jersey, chief of the Audubon Park (New Jersey) Volunteer Fire Company, was arrested Wednesday night on state charges of second-degree distribution of child pornography and third-degree possession of child pornography.  Investigators executed a search warrant at the fire station at the time of Terruso’s arrest. It is alleged that Terruso knowingly used Internet file-sharing software to make multiple files of child pornography available for any other user to download from “shared folders” that he controlled on a computer at the fire station.

The investigation began when a HSI special agent was monitoring a file-sharing network popular with offenders who seek child pornography.  The agent was using advanced technology to search for telltale digital “fingerprints” of known child pornography as well as search terms associated with child pornography.  He identified an Internet Protocol address, ultimately traced to a computer at the fire station, which had child pornography available in a shared folder.  He partially downloaded a video from the folder of an adult male raping a prepubescent girl. 

During the investigation, the agent also identified additional child pornography in a shared folder on a computer at the fire station, including videos of prepubescent boys having sex with other boys and adult males. The investigation revealed that Terruso allegedly was the person using the computer to share child pornography.  During the search, investigators seized four laptop computers – including a computer personally owned by Terruso – a desktop computer, two external hard drives, a tablet, thumb drives, and cell phones.

A preliminary review of the equipment revealed more than 1,000 files of suspected child pornography. 

“We charge that Terruso sordidly abused the trust placed in him as fire chief by viewing and sharing child pornography at the fire station,” said acting Attorney General Hoffman. “In doing so, he allegedly linked himself to the depraved network of offenders who, by sharing child pornography, perpetually re-victimize the children involved and directly motivate those who sexually exploit and torture children to create these vile materials.”

“During the past three years, we have worked with HSI and the New Jersey State Police to charge over 100 offenders with child pornography crimes, including 80 offenders charged in three major sweeps targeting those who use file-sharing networks to distribute child pornography,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “This case is particularly egregious because Terruso allegedly used his position as fire chief to commit these crimes in a public facility.”

Second-degree crimes carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while third-degree crimes carry a sentence of three to five years in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000.  There is a presumption of imprisonment for the charge of possession of child pornography if the defendant is found to have possessed more than 100 files of child pornography.

The charges are merely accusations and Terruso is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Because the charges are indictable offenses, they will be presented to a grand jury for potential indictment.

Terruso remains in state custody in the Camden County Jail. A judge set a cash-only bond at $150,000.

This investigation was conducted under HSI's Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 12,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.

HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.

HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.