LEBANON COUNTY, Pa. — A special needs teacher and volunteer basketball coach was arrested March 2 on child pornography charges.
Andrew Eberhart solicited sexually explicit photos from middle and high school boys, according to court documents. Over the summer, the 23-year-old used two Instagram accounts to pose as a teenage girl, attempting to exchange nude female photos for the boys’ nude photos.
The victims were seven boys, ages 11 to 17, according to the criminal complaint.
Eberhart faces seven felony counts of sexual abuse of children, one felony count of criminal use of a communication facility, and one misdemeanor count of corruption of minors.
“The people online who are doing these things, who are soliciting child pornography, it`s horrible, it`s horrific,” said Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf. “They are preying on the innocence of these children and we are going to prosecute this case vigorously as a result.”
Eberhart did not share the photos with anyone else.
“It was his intent, his purpose, to get those images and have them for his own devices and gratification,” Hess Graf said.
Though the boys sent images that are technically child pornography, Hess Graf said they’re the victims in this situation, and won’t be criminally charged.
“These are very young boys who are being asked constantly online, 'Do this, send this, give me this.' They think they`re sending it to this pretty adult female,” Hess Graf said. “They did an action that was manipulated by, in this case, the defendant.”
In a statement, Cornwall-Lebanon School District said school counselors were available to all students and staff.
Palmyra Area School District also released a statement, saying Eberhart was placed on administrative leave Jan. 22, as soon as the district learned about the investigation against him.
Eberhart also has a 2019 conviction for disorderly conduct.
Eberhart was unable to post his $100,000 bail and is being held at the Lebanon County jail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 12.