NYC High School Teacher Arrested for Allegedly Sharing Child Porn on Dark Web

A high school teacher in New York City has been arrested after being caught allegedly sharing child pornography via the Dark Web.

41-year-old Belmont Preparatory High School teacher Jonathan Schweitzer was arrested Wednesday morning and has been removed from payroll, according to local outlet WNBC. Schweitzer, who taught at Belmont for 11 years, is accused of sharing as many as 10 pornographic clips by way of a peer-to-peer service between "at least" February and March 2019. The clips in question allegedly showed "prepubescent children" engaged in acts of a sexual nature with both other children and adults.

A search warrant was also executed Wednesday, at which point police say they found child porn on a laptop. A separate report on the arrest from News 12 adds more details. According to the report, prosecutors have pinpointed one video in particular in which a child believed to be 10 years of age is seen engaging in a sexual act.

In a statement, a Department of Education rep called the allegations "disturbing and saddening," noting that staff would move to formally fire Schweitzer as soon as possible.

The resulting charges, distribution and receipt of child pornography and possession, each carry potential maxes of 20 years behind bars.

"The abuse and exploitation of children for viewing pleasure is abhorrent, and we will seek to arrest those predators so that they face justice for their actions," said Angel M. Melendez, the special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations' New York Field Office, on Wednesday in a press release.