Lawrence mayor's chief of staff arrested on child pornography charges
LAWRENCE – Jhovanny Martes-Rosario, the chief of staff for Lawrence Mayor Brian DePena, was arrested Monday night on child pornography charges and later fired from his job.
Martes-Rosario was booked on two counts of child pornography. He later made bail, which was set at $1,050.
During his arraignment on Tuesday, Martes-Rosario pleaded not guilty. A judge ordered Martes-Rosario to stay off the internet, away from all children except his own son, and surrender his passport.
In court, Martes-Rosario said he was fired from his city position on Monday.
State police began the investigation in December. Detectives said they received information from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about images allegedly uploaded from an IP address associated with Martes-Rosario's home.
During their Monday search of the house, police allegedly found dozens of images on Martes-Rosario's iPad.
Martes-Rosario is next scheduled to appear in court on March 27.