College ASL professor Larry Stephen faces child pornography charges
MetroWest Daily News in Massachusetts reported that a college ASL professor from Marlborough, Larry Stephen (44), was arrested last week at his home and charged with the receipt, distribution and possession of child pornography.
Authorities said he distributed pornography featuring children as young as 4 on a social media platform but did not specify which one.
The news report said that according to an affidavit, federal officials started an investigation in May. A federal undercover agent exchanged messages on social media and email with a user named “Mango,” who said he worked as an ASL professor. This “Mango” person said he was interested in little girls as young as 2 and he posted several videos of child pornography.
Federal agents obtained a warrant to determine who Mango was via his email and discovered that it was registered to Larry Stephen, who is a coordinator for the Montgomery College ASL program. Stephen works at the Rockville, Maryland campus and he is deaf.
On June 7, federal authorities served a search warrant at Stephen’s home and seized his phone and other electronics. Authorities said he denied viewing or distributing child pornography, but authorities said they found evidence of Stephen sending illegal videos after they got permission to log in to his social media accounts on his phone.
—-------
[Sponsored video from Convo: www.convorelay.com]
—--------
[Advertisement from Disaster Distress Helpline: After a disaster, you may be at risk for emotional distress. Warning signs can include feeling isolated, anxious, having trouble sleeping and more. If you or someone you know is Deaf or hard of hearing, the Disaster Distress Helpline offers a direct videophone option.
This free service for ASL users is answered 24/7 by trained crisis workers fluent in ASL and can be accessed using any videophone-enabled device and dialing 1-800-985-5990 or at https://bit.ly/3CEwnNT
—----
MetroWest Daily News reported that Stephen appeared last Tuesday in federal court and was released without bail but ordered to not have or use any electronic devices and to have no unsupervised contact with children.
The article said Montgomery College said Stephen has been placed on administrative leave and removed from all duties after he was arrested on his charges.
Stephen’s LinkedIn profile says that he was the program coordinator and professor of ASL at Montgomery College since January 2020.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/pr/marlboro-man-arrested-child-pornography-offenses