Officer Aaron Pepion Arrested for Having Sex with Young Girl

A Blackfeet police officer who resigned three weeks ago has been arrested on allegations that he had sex with a young girl.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says Aaron Pepion is being held without bail. Pepion was in court before a magistrate Wednesday in Missoula and will be in court again Friday on a bond hearing.

Prosecutors say Pepion had sex in April with a girl who was born in 1994. No age was listed for Pepion in his charging documents.

Blackfeet Tribal Department of Public Safety Director Henry Devereaux says the FBI investigated Pepion in July and he resigned three weeks ago. Devereaux says Pepion had been an officer for about a year when officials began investigating the allegations against him.

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Former Officer David LaRose Sentenced to 4 Years for Child Porn

A former Prince George's County police officer was sentenced Monday to more than four years in prison for possession of child pornography, federal authorities said.

David J. LaRose, 35, of Lusby had acknowledged that he purchased child pornography from Web sites in 2006 and 2007, authorities said. LaRose, who was convicted in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, last worked as a patrol officer assigned to the Oxon Hill station.

LaRose, who had joined the Prince George's police in 1996, was suspended with pay in March 2008 pending the investigation.

U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams Jr. ordered LaRose to serve 51 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. He also will be required to register as a sex offender.

Corrections Officer Joe Rocha Charged with Child Porn

The 49-year-old Travis County corrections officer who was charged with possession of child pornography Friday was caught when had asked for help with his computer, according to an arrest affidavit.

On Aug. 1, Joe Rocha asked another corrections officer to help him fix his computer because his would not start, the arrest affidavit says. He gave the hard drive to the other officer on Aug. 16 and asked him to save all family pictures and pornography that may be on the computer, the affidavit says.

“Mr. Rocha told him ‘OK, there is kiddy porn and if it got out it would be bad. Very bad,” according to the affidavit, but the officer thought Rocha was making a joke.

When the officer decided to work on the computer Aug. 19, he found several files of child pornography that pictured children as young as 7 having sex with adults.

Sheriff’s office spokesman Roger Wade said that Rocha had been employed with the agency for 23 years. He said Rocha has been fired and that an investigation into the charges is under way.

Deputies were informed that Rocha “may have been involved in illegal activities” on Aug. 25, Wade said. Authorities said they found “several images that appeared to depict child pornography on a computer belonging to Rocha.”

Rocha was being held at the Travis County Jail as of Monday with bail set at $100,000. Possession of child pornography is a third-degree felony. If Rocha is convicted, he could face between two and 10 years in prison.