A Lancaster man is facing child pornography charges after authorities say he used a social media app to meet and exchange explicit content with local victims.
The U.S. Attorney says 24-year-old Joseph Lombardo used an alias on the "Kik" app to meet at least one female victim when she was between 12- and 13-years-old. The first victim came forward in May of 2014. She told Lancaster Police that a man who called himself "Chris Richardson" had contacted her on Kip and demanded naked pictures, threatening to post other pictures of her on the Internet and extort her if she refused.
The victim sent Lombardo at least 150 explicit photos over the course of several years. Authorities say he used a friend and confident of the victim to convince her to meet him in person, under a different alias, and under the guise that he was someone who could help the victim get away from "Chris Richardson."
Authorities say Lombardo then began communicating with the victim under the name "Dan." "Dan" convinced the victim to send more naked pictures, and eventually meet in person. Upon meeting in person, the victim says she told "Dan" her actual age. The two engaged in sexual activity, and "Dan" asked her if he could videotape it and post it to the internet. Authorities say it is unclear whether he actually did this.
In May 2014, the victim picked Lombardo out of a photo lineup and identified him as "Dan."
Authorities then searched Lombardo's laptop and found naked photos of two more victims, a 13-year-old girl and a 16-year-old girl. Both of those victims say they met Lombardo as "Chris Richardson" on meetme.com.
Lombardo was arrested and charged by criminal with production, receipt and possession of child pornography. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum of 30 years.
