Chapin HS teacher arrested in probe into nude photos sent to undercover acting as minor
A Chapin High School teacher was arrested in connection with sending nude photos and explicit text messages to an undercover agent who he believed was a 13-year-old girl, court documents state.
Orlando Solis, 46, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of attempted transfer of obscene material to minors, FBI El Paso Division officials said.
Solis is a mathematics teacher at Chapin High School, according to an El Paso Independent School District online staff directory. The EPISD website also lists Solis as an adviser to the Chapin Robotics Club.
“The district is grateful for the collaborative efforts of agents led by FBI El Paso Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey R. Downey to keep our students safe," El Paso Independent School District Police Department Chief Manuel Chavira said in a statement. "El Paso ISD will fully cooperate with federal authorities throughout the course of this investigation."
The investigation into Solis began Jan. 23 when U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit was conducting an undercover operation looking at the enticement of minors on social networking, according to a federal complaint affidavit.
The undercover officer was acting as a 13-year-old girl on the social media application Whisper.
Solis, who was allegedly using the username “dog_code,” contacted the officer who he thought was a young girl, the affidavit states.
The officer told Solis that he was talking to a 13-year-old girl. Solis continued to talk to the undercover officer on Whisper between Jan. 23 to Jan. 26, the affidavit states. The conversation was then moved to text messaging. The conversation continued through text messaging from Jan. 26 to Jan. 31.
The FBI was notified of the investigation into Solis Jan. 27, the affidavit states.
Solis allegedly sent the girl explicit text messages about sexual acts and nine nude photos of himself, the affidavit states.
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Law enforcement officers then conducted surveillance of Solis who was seen at an EPISD high school. The affidavit does not state what school Solis was seen at.
EPISD police located a photo of Solis that matched faces from a photo he had allegedly sent the undercover officer during their online conversations, the affidavit states.
Solis was booked into the El Paso County Jail Friday without bond, jail records show. He is scheduled to appear Monday at an initial appearance in federal court, officials said.
Solis faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of the charge.
The investigation into Solis was conducted by the FBI El Paso’s Child Exploitation & Human Trafficking Task Force, U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the El Paso Independent School District Police Department, officials said.
“FBI El Paso’s Child Exploitation & Human Trafficking Task Force will immediately act upon allegations of child exploitation in order to protect our community’s children,” FBI El Paso Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey R. Downey said in a statement. “We want to remind the public that if you are a victim of this type of crime or know of someone who may be a victim to call the FBI at (915) 832-5000.”
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Teacher arrested in probe into nude pics sent to 'minor" on Whisper
