College security officer accused of soliciting online nude photos from teen

Bordentown City, N.J. (WTXF) - Authorities say a college security officer has been charged for soliciting online nude photos from a teen.

"On the advice of counsel I have no comment. Thank you," said 58-year-old Alan Berman. He had little to say when he opened the door of his Bordentown City home on Lucas Drive Tuesday evening. But neighbors had a lot to say about the charges he's facing.

"He needs to leave. I have a special needs child two doors down and he needs to go," said Claire Lindsey. Investigators say Berman is charged with soliciting nude photos online from a teenage boy and possession of child pornography.

"There's too many children around here to have that going on in our neighborhood," said Lindsey. According to the Burlington County Prosecutors Office and Bordentown City police, Berman pretended to be a teenage girl to get a teen boy to send nude pictures and videos of himself. Investigators say Berman used the online video streaming app called LiveMe to communicate with the boy including having sexually explicit conversations. Neighbors watched authorities take him into custody last Friday morning.

"I witnessed the SWAT team surrounding the apartment. I was just very taken aback," said Beth Guinness. The investigation started earlier this year when authorities say a woman in Arkansas contacted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children saying her son was contacted by a man who investigators say later turned out to be Berman. That agency contacted the Burlington County Prosecutors High Tech Crime Unit.

Investigators say Berman works as a campus security officer at Rider University in Lawrence and also serves as a captain in his hometown's volunteer fire department.

"I'm just sickened by the whole thing," said Guinness. Investigators are now asking anyone who suspects Berman of inappropriate behavior to contact the Burlington County Prosecutors Office at 609-265-5035.

Investigators say a search warrant of the suspect's home led them to confiscate a cellphone, tablet and other digital devices now being analyzed by the High-Tech Crimes Unit. They're now preparing the case for a grand jury for possible indictment.