In an incident that Montgomery County Sheriff Sean Kilkenny called, "an affront to the public's trust," a deputy from his office has been arrested and charged with possession of child pornography.
According to law enforcement officials, James Christopher Buckley, 57, of Gilbertsville -- a deputy sheriff officer in the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office -- was arrested on Tuesday on charges of endangering the welfare of a child for possession and distribution of child pornography.
Buckley was apprehended by law enforcement officials in Cape May County on Tuesday, police said, while he was at his vacation property in Wildwood, NJ.
According to police, an investigation uncovered various child sexual abuse materials were "possessed and distributed" via an iCloud account that belonged to Buckley.
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On Wednesday, Montgomery County Sheriff Kilkenny said that Buckley was immediately suspended when his office learned of the charges against the deputy.
"As an agency committed to upholding the law and maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability, we take these allegations extremely seriously. Per office policy, Deputy Buckley has been immediately suspended pending the resolution of the investigation," Kilkenny said in a statement on Buckley's arrest.
The sheriff said that his office is cooperating with the investigation and will be conducting an internal review following this incident.
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"The conduct outlined in these charges is antithetical to the values and principles of our agency and an affront to the public’s trust. We remain steadfast in our commitment to serving and protecting the residents of Montgomery County," said a statement from Kilkenny.
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