HARRISBURG, Pa. — Update, 3 p.m.: The Central Dauphin School District issued the following statement:
The Central Dauphin School District was recently informed that an extracurricular instructor who worked with high school students in the marching band was charged with multiple crimes relating to child pornography on his personal computer. It is our understanding that no District students or property were involved with this matter.
Furthermore, this individual’s clearances were renewed in 2020 and he had all legal clearances necessary to work with students prior to being charged with these reprehensible crimes.
Immediately upon learning of the charges alleged against this individual, the District terminated his position.
The District will have no further comments on this matter.
Previously
A former assistant band director at Central Dauphin High School is facing more than 75 counts of possession of child pornography charges after investigators with the state attorney general's office say he was found to be in possession of hundreds of illicit images, court documents show.
Stephen Gugoff, 39, of Harrisburg, is also charged with criminal use of a communication facility, authorities say.
He was charged on June 4 following an investigation by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General's Child Predator Section and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, which claims Gugoff downloaded several hundred illegal files between March and June of this year.
An online investigation of the BitTorrent network for offenders sharing child pornography found an IP address that was traced to Gugoff, according to a criminal complaint affidavit filed by Special Agent Travis Nye before District Judge Kenneth A. Lenker.
Nye claims that 428 files containing suspected child porn were traced to the IP address.
On June 4, investigators executed a search warrant at Gugoff's Harrisburg home. A forensic examination of the electronic devices found at the home, including a Gateway laptop computer, uncovered at least 100 downloaded files depicting child pornography, the criminal complaint states.
Investigators then went to Central Dauphin High School, where administrators confirmed Gugoff was still employed there and provided his contact information.
The school district said in a statement Monday that Gugoff was fired after the district learned of the charges against him.
Gugoff was arrested and is currently in Dauphin County Prison in lieu of $100,000 bail.
