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The notified the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office of an apparent upload of images of child pornography,
William H. Maass, Jr., of Bedminster, was charged with third-degree possession of child pornography and third-degree possession of child erotica, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said.
Acting on a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), Robertson's office launched an investigation targeting Maass, Robertson said alongside Chief of County Detectives John W. Fodor and Bedminster Township Chief of Police Karl Rock.
Maass was suspected of uploading numerous sexually explicit images of children under the age of 18, authorities said.
Detectives with the SCPO and Bedminster police executed a Superior Court search warrant at Maass' Autumn Ridge Road home on March 23 around 6:35 a.m., seizing computers and other external storage drives for forensic examination, Robertson said.
An initial forensic examination of these devices revealed images depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child, Robertson said.
Maass was arrested without incident at his home, then processed and released pending a court appearance.
According to LinkedIn, Maass is the owner and principal of Hoboken-based company "Forms Tech Inc."
Prosecutor Robertson, Chief Fodor and Chief Rock request anyone with information relating to this investigation to contact the Somerset County Prosecutors Office Special Investigations Unit/Computer Crimes Unit at (908) 231-7100 or the Bedminster Township Police Department at (908) 234-0585 or via the STOPit app.
The STOPit app allows citizens to provide anonymous reports including videos and photos. STOPit can be downloaded to your smart phone for free at the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, access code: SOMERSETNJ. Information can also be provided through the Somerset County Crime Stoppers’ Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477).
All anonymous STOPit reports and Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.
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