ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. — A York County man has resigned his position as president of South Central Pennsylvania Softball Inc. after being accused of attempting to solicit sex acts from a minor in Lancaster County.
Jeffrey John Tierno Jr., 32, was charged with criminal solicitation -- disseminating photo/filming of child sex acts, contact/communication with a minor -- sexual abuse, criminal use of a communication facility and corruption of minors after an investigation conducted by Elizabethtown Borough Police, who were alerted by Spring Garden Township Police in August, according to the criminal complaint affidavit.
Spring Garden Township Police received a report that Tierno was exchanging explicit messages with the juvenile victim, the complaint said. The communication occurred through social media on Facebook and Snapchat, according to police.
In a forensic interview with investigators, the juvenile victim said they had become friendly and exchanged messages with Tierno for a few months, but the messages eventually became sexual in nature in early August, according to the complaint.
The juvenile said Tierno offered in a message to send him a photo of himself, and asked the juvenile to do send a nude photo in return, according to police. The juvenile said they told Tierno that they would not send any photos because it would be child pornography if they did.
Tierno then said he could show the juvenile in person, the victim told police.
In an interview with police, Tierno allegedly admitted to engaging in "inappropriate talk" that included "sexual things" with the juvenile and that he knew the victim was under 18, police said.
He also allegedly admitted that what he did was wrong, that the juvenile indicated they were uncomfortable with the conversation, and that he apologized to the juvenile and stopped communicating, according to the complaint.
Tierno had served as president of South Central Pennsylvania Softball Inc. since January. He resigned after being charged, the organization said in a statement on its website.
"On Friday, October 6, SCPAS Officers were made aware of a Lancaster County Criminal Court Docket in the name of Jeffrey Tierno from Dover, PA," the statement said. "The Court Docket indicates that the named individual has been charged with crimes against children. Shortly thereafter, SCPAS confirmed that the named individual on the Court Docket is the same person as the Jeff Tierno who was serving as President of SCPAS. Shortly after that confirmation, Jeffrey Tierno submitted his resignation as President of SCPAS.
"Tierno assumed the Presidency on January 1, 2023 after being appointed by the Board of Directors in 2022.
"The Office of President is an administrative position within SCPAS."
Tierno is currently awaiting his preliminary hearing, which is currently set for October 24, according to court records. His bail was set at $200,000 unsecured.
