Rider Security Guard Got Teen Boy To Give Him Nude Photos: Cops

LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP, NJ — A security guard at Rider University has been charged with impersonating a teenage girl in order to convince a teenage boy to send him nude photos and videos of himself through an online video streaming application, according to authorities.

Alan J. Berman, 58, of Bordentown, also engaged in other sexually-explicit conversations with the teenage boy, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina and Bordentown City Police Chief Frederic Miller. Berman, who is also a captain in his hometown’s volunteer fire department, is also charged with possession of child pornography.

"We are aware Alan Berman’s arrest. He is currently on administrative leave from Rider University," Rider spokesperson Kristine Brown said. "He was hired in August 2017. All public safety employees at Rider must complete a satisfactory background check as a contingency of their employment."

A representative from the Bordentown City Volunteer Fire Department couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday morning.

The investigation began when a woman from Arkansas reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that her son had been contacted online by a man who was trying to engage in inappropriate conversations, according to authorities. That man was identified as Berman, and NCMEC contacted the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office.

Detectives executed a search warrant at his home on Friday, and said they seized a cell phone, tablet and other digital devices that will be analyzed by the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office High-Tech Crimes Unit.

Berman was arrested at his home and charged with four counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Three of the counts are third-degree and the other is a second-degree charge.

A detention hearing will be held later this week in Superior Court in Mount Holly. The Prosecutor’s Office will then prepare the case for presentation to a Grand Jury to be considered for indictment.

Anyone who suspects Berman of inappropriate behavior is asked to call the Prosecutor’s Office at 609-265-5035 and ask to speak with a detective in the High-Tech Crimes Unit.

The attached image of Alan Berman was provided by the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office