Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw announced that a 23-year-old Pemberton Township man has been charged with soliciting nude photos and videos of underage boys he met on social media platforms and then sharing the material with others online.
Kristopher Trela, of Ursinus Court, was charged with Manufacturing Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) (First Degree), Distribution of CSAM (Second Degree), Possession of CSAM with the Intent to Distribute (Second Degree), Debauching the Morals of a Child, (Third Degree), Distribution of Obscenity to Minors (Third Degree) and Possession of CSAM (Third Degree.)
Trela was taken into custody August 8 and later released following an appearance in Superior Court in Mount Holly. The case will now be prepared for presentation to a grand jury for possible indictment.
The investigation, which began after the Prosecutor’s Office received multiple tips from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children concerning Trela’s online activities, revealed that Trela would engage with underage males on Discord, Instagram and Snapchat. He would claim to be an underage female and send explicit pictures and videos, then ask the recipients to send videos of themselves masturbating. The investigation further revealed that Trela had additional conversations with others where he requested CSAM, which he then traded with adult males.
At the time of his arrest, Trela was working as an employee of the Champions Before- and After-School Care Program, which serves students enrolled in Southampton Township Schools and also operates a summer camp. At this point in the investigation, there is no reason to believe that any of the videos found in Trela’s possession involved students from the Champions program. A representative of the company indicated Trela has been terminated.
The investigation was conducted by the Prosecutor’s Office, with assistance from the New Jersey State Police, Pemberton Township Police Department and United States Homeland Security Investigations – Cherry Hill Office. The lead investigator is BCPO Detective Jillian Marin. Trela will be prosecuted by the BCPO Special Victims Unit.
Anyone who believes they may have been victimized by this defendant, or has information that might assist investigators, is asked to send an email to tips@co.burlington.nj.us.
The BCPO is a member of the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
All persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.