FRANKLIN, Va. — A Canadian man is facing charges after he allegedly sent photos of genitals to a 14-year-old Franklin girl in an online chatroom and then asked that the child send similar pictures in return.
The Franklin Police Department said 52-year-old Christopher Merner of Kitchener, Ontario, is charged in Canada for luring a child, making sexually explicit material available to a child, and indecent communications.
Police said that back in March, the victim was in a chatroom when she began receiving messages from an older man. The victim indicated her age, which was when the man sent her the inappropriate photos and asked that she send him back similar pictures in return.
The incident was reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which in turn reached out to the Franklin Police Department.
Following an investigation and assistance from INTERPOL officials, members of the Canadian Waterloo Regional Police Service served a search warrant at Merner's Canadian home on Tuesday and subsequently arrested him.
Franklin police said Merner is currently in Canadian custody, awaiting a bail hearing.