Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina announced that a Lumberton Township man has been arrested and charged with possession and distribution of child pornography.
Jeffrey Degroff, 58, of the first block of Chase Road in Lumberton, was charged with seven counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child (five Second Degree and two Third Degree). Among the material Degroff is charged with possessing, and then distributing through a digital file-sharing program, is a video of an adult male engaged in sexual activity with a prepubescent female.
The investigation began earlier this year after the Prosecutor’s Office High-Tech Crimes Unit was notified of Degroff’s online activities by the United States Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
The investigation, which also included the New Jersey State Police, New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice and Lumberton Township Police Department, revealed that Degroff would use the digital file-sharing program to download pornography for personal use, and would then make it available for others to access from his devices.
Degroff was taken into custody at his residence on December 14 following the execution of a search warrant. Cell phones, a computer and an external hard drive belonging to Degroff were seized. A forensic analysis of the devices conducted by the High-Tech Crimes Unit revealed multiple child pornography files.
The case will now be prepared for presentation to a Burlington County Grand Jury to be considered for indictment.
The lead investigator is BCPO Detective Kevin Sobotka. The Prosecutor’s Office High-Tech Crimes Unit is a member of the New Jersey State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and the New Jersey State Police Cyber Terrorism Task Force.