HARRISBURG, Pa. (FOX 29) - A New Jersey sheriff's deputy has been charged after he allegedly had sex with a Lehigh Valley teen and then posted video of the encounter online, authorities announced Monday.
Joshua Padilla, 33, of Eatontown, New Jersey, is charged with unlawful contact with a minor, sexual abuse of children and related offenses.
Padilla is employed as a sheriff's deputy in Middlesex County.
Investigators received a tip from Pennsylvania State Police in January that an adult man, later identified as Padilla, had unlawful sexual contact with a 17-year-old girl in Northampton County in either April or May of 2018.
Officials say Padilla first contacted the victim, who he knew was underage, through a site called adultfriendfinder.com.
Padilla allegedly recorded the sex acts and uploaded video of them onto the same site, where it was viewed and shared by other users.
Prosecutors say Padilla then sought additional sexual contact from an undercover agent who was posing as a 14-year-old girl.
Padilla allegedly said that he wanted to meet with the purported child, sent photos of his genitals and asked for photos of her.
Texts from Padilla allegedly indicated he would perform sex acts on her, and he asked for more photos of the purported child while she was in school.
Padilla is currently in police custody in New Jersey, awaiting extradition to Northampton County, where the charges were filed on Friday.
Anyone with information about this case or Padilla is urged to contact Pennsylvania's Child Predator hotline at 1-800-385-1044