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Craig Beach police chief indicted on child pornography charges

YOUNGSTOWN — The police chief of Craig Beach village was indicted Thursday on federal charges linked to his inappropriate relationship with a 16-year-old girl, according to a news release from the U.S. District Court of Northern Ohio.

Chief Andrew M. Soloman, 36, was charged with two counts of receiving and possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

According to the release, Soloman is accused of receiving files that contained videos of a 16-year-old girl engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The alleged offenses took place between Oct. 24 and Dec. 7, 2017.

The indictment also states Soloman possessed an Apple iPhone 7 that on Dec. 7 contained child pornography.

According to the news release, Soloman, who lives on Greenfield Street NW in Warren, met the juvenile victim when responding to her aunt’s home about reports of harassment and a runaway.

According to the press release, the victim and the chief sat in his cruiser for several hours talking. He provided her with his work email address, according to court documents. The two continued to communicate via text and email through 2017.

The victim sent Soloman sexually explicit photos of herself, while Soloman is accused of responding by sending sexually explicit photos via his work email account, according to court documents.

Soloman was arrested in December on a dereliction of duty charge after a search of the Craig Beach Police Department. He told police that he didn’t have physical sexual contact with the girl.

Soloman has been on leave from the police department during the investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Sullivan following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and the Austintown Police Department.

Soloman’s attorney, Scott Cochran, said he had not seen the indictment and does not know when an arraignment will be held. The federal court record also does not have an arraignment scheduled.

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