NJ State Trooper Indicted, Plotted To Sexually Assault Girl: AG

A suspended New Jersey state trooper has been indicted for engaging in a sexually explicit email exchange with an adult woman and plotting to sexually assault a young girl, the Office of Attorney General announced on Thursday.

The trooper and the woman allegedly exchanged sexually explicit photos, including a photo of the girl, according to an OAG release.

Trooper Jeffrey Reitz, 48, of Williamstown was indicted Thursday by a state grand jury on two counts of third-degree possession of child pornography. Reitz was initially charged and arrested on April 18, 2019. He has been suspended without pay since his arrest, according to the release.

On Dec. 31, 2014, Reitz engaged in a sexually explicit email exchange with an adult woman, during which the woman proposed that he sexually assault a prepubescent girl, according to the release.

Reitz asked for a photo of the girl, and the woman responded by emailing Reitz a sexually explicit photo of the girl. Reitz allegedly sent photos of his genitals to the woman, both before and after the woman sent the sexually explicit photo of the girl, the release said.

The first count of possession of child pornography relates to the sexually explicit photo of the girl sent during that exchange with the woman. The second count of possession of child pornography relates to additional images of child pornography that were found in an iCloud account that belongs to Reitz following his arrest.

Reitz’s alleged participation in the email exchange with the woman was discovered much later as the result of evidence seized in a separate investigation by the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, the release said.

Reitz was charged in an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Cyber Crimes Bureau. Deputy Attorney General Rachael Weeks presented the indictment to the state grand jury.

Third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Timothy P. Lydon in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Gloucester County, where Reitz will be ordered to appear at a later date for arraignment.