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Barton Cross-Tierney 2nd, 31, of Ocean Township, pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child and exhibiting obscenity to a minor, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey said on Wednesday, Feb. 9.
Cross-Tierney, faces up to five years in New Jersey State Prison, mandatory Megan’s Law registration and parole supervision for life, Linskey said.
Throughout 2018, the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office received multiple Cybertips regarding a user on Discord (an online chat platform that allows for text exchanges, voice communications and video chats) engaging in inappropriate conversations with underage girls.
In December 2018, a juvenile female contacted the FBI tipline and reported that she had engaged in an inappropriate online relationship with an adult male from Ocean with the Discord username “Barton Cross," Linskey said. An investigation revealed that Barton Cross committed sexual acts while in a video chat with the juvenile victim, the prosecutor said.
Further investigation revealed that Barton Cross was in communication with another juvenile victim on Discord, she said. He also engaged in sexual acts while in a video chat with that juvenile victim, according to Linskey.
A subsequent investigation conducted by members of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Computer Crimes Unit, the Ocean Township Police department, members of the ICAC Task Force, and the FBI determined “Barton Cross” to be Barton C. Cross-Tierney, of Franklin Parkway in Ocean Township, the prosecutor said.
Sentencing is scheduled for May 13
Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Stephanie Dugan is handling the case.
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