Harriton Teacher Charged With Child Porn Crimes

BRYN MAWR, PA — A Lower Merion School District teacher has been federally charged with child pornography crimes, according to officials.

The Lower Merion School District said Harriton High School English teacher Jeremy Schobel, 31, was taken into custody by the FBI.

Schobel, who joined the district in 2021, was charged with enticement of a minor to engage in illicit sexual conduct and manufacture and attempted manufacture of child pornography, according to charging documents.

Schobel is accused of creating fake online profiles he used to pose as an underage girl to get sexually explicit photos of minor girls, federal authorities said.

According to charging documents, Schobel posed as young girls on the Yubo and SnapChat apps under the guise of finding relationships with other young women.

Investigators learned from SnapChat data that the accounts he allegedly used — "jillmoreno" and "sophiavan423" — were geolocated to Harriton High School.

Phone records tied to the Yubo and SnapChat accounts identified Schobel as the account holder.

Authorities said he admitted to federal agents to doing so for years after being taken into custody Wednesday on a search warrant.

Charging documents show the investigation began in November 2022 after Yubo tipped off investigators to accounts that appeared to be "grooming" underage girls and later said the account was owned by an adult man.

The Lower Merion School District is cooperating fully with law enforcement. The district released a statement on the matter.

"Pending the disposition of this matter, Mr. Schobel’s employment has been suspended and his access to District devices and networks has been terminated," the district said in a statement. "He had no prior record that would have precluded his hiring. While we understand that this is an ongoing investigation, at this time, LMSD is not aware of any inappropriate interactions between Mr. Schobel and LMSD students. Additionally, the District had not received any complaints or concerns from students or staff regarding his conduct in school."

The district is encouraging anyone with information regarding allegations against Schobel to contact Robert Nelson of the FBI at 215-418-4000.

Counselors at Harriton High School will be available to students and staff who need support, the district said.