Kenosha man charged with sharing child porn, stalking

A man from Kenosha, Wisconsin, is facing charges after allegedly posing as a teenager to get nude photos from a girl in the north suburbs and then sending them to her family and friends after she refused to take more.

Howard Hickey, 56, is charged with three counts each of possession of child pornography and distribution of child pornography, one count of stalking and one count of obstructing an officer, the Lake County sheriff’s office said in a statement.

The charges stem from an investigation which was sparked In September 2019, after a woman living in an unincorporated area near Gurnee reported that she was being harassed and stalked online, the sheriff’s office said. Nude photos of her were sent to family and friends.

An investigation revealed that in 2016, when the woman was a minor, she met someone online who claimed to be a 16-year-old boy, the sheriff’s office said. The pair communicated online for several months and she felt like she was in a relationship with the person.

She was enticed to send nude photos and videos of herself to the person, but eventually ended communication with them, the sheriff’s office said.

In 2019, the woman received unsolicited threatening messages from the person, telling her that if she didn’t send more nude photos and videos, he would send the images he already had to her family and friends, the sheriff’s office said. The woman refused, and the person shared the images.

Hickey was allegedly determined to be the person behind the fake profile, and authorities executed a search warrant at his home on July 2, the sheriff’s office said. He allegedly tried to destroy an electronic device during the search.

Hickey was released from custody after posting bail, the sheriff’s office said.