Govt. Contractor Facing Charges Fortified Cherry Hill Home With Dogs, Metal Doors: Docs

CHERRY HILL, NJ — A government contractor fortified his Cherry Hill home with aggressive dogs, surveillance cameras attached to trees, and metal doors before authorities found child pornography, methamphetamine, explosives and a U.S. Navy robot in his possession, prosecutors said in court documents Patch obtained.

Robert Cormier, 50, was arrested and charged June 13 with 18 counts related to child pornography, drugs, guns and explosives.

• Read more: Cherry Hill Man Found With Meth, Child Porn, Guns, Bomb-Making Materials: Prosecutor

Cormier ran a government-contracting business out of his Cherry Hill home, according to the Camden County Prosecutor's Office. Various webpages linking him to different consulting agencies he purportedly operated appear to have been deleted, and Patch has not been able to confirm Cormier's affiliation with those companies.

He was also a youth sports coach, but it's unclear where he coached, according to NBC10 Philadelphia.

A judge denied the state's motion to keep Cormier detained pre-trial at a June 18 hearing.

Cormier's attorney, John A. Zohlman III, says his client is innocent.

"Mr. Cormier has pled not guilty to the charges and is, in fact, innocent of all of them," Zohlman told Patch via email. "There was a very lengthy detainer hearing that took place in the Camden County Superior Court wherein it was argued that the allegations made by the CCPO were not only misguided but in many respects, simply wrong as revealed by their own investigative reports."

"As a result of what was argued to be the proverbial rush to judgment, Mr. Cormier was ordered by the Court to be released from detention and will remain so pending trial," Zohlman continued. "He will look forward to his day in court and at which time he expects to be fully exonerated of all charges."

Tip From Snapchat

Investigation into Cormier started with a tip from Snapchat, according to the affidavit for his charges. On March 2, the social media platform alerted the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NMEC) about a user who shared child pornography.

The video showed a man sexually assaulting an underage girl, the affidavit says.

The NMEC alerted State Police, who forwarded the information to the Camden County Prosecutor's Office a month later.

Cormier shared the video with an IP address that was registered in Cherry Hill, authorities said. Detectives reviewed communications data and linked the Snapchat account and its affiliated email address back to Cormier, according to court documents.

Investigators later found the video in a Google gallery that also had a photo of Cormier's passport, authorities said.

Search Of Cormier's Home

Cormier was arrested June 13 after briefly barricading himself inside a Barrington home, authorities said. That day, the prosecutor's office and Cherry Hill police executed a search warrant at Cormier's home.

His house's entry points had metal doors with metal frames. Several surveillance cameras were mounted outside, including some attached to trees in his yard, the affidavit says.

There were also several "aggressive" Belgian Malinois and other canines on his property, authorities said.

Cormier lives on Donahue Avenue, according to property records.

Inside the home, authorities say they found three handguns, a shotgun, more than a half-ounce of meth, and eighteen 30-round high-capacity magazines.

Authorities also opened a PODS storage container in the yard, which had several protective cases that contained seven "pipe bomb explosive-like devices," the affidavit says.

A bomb-disposal robot belonging to the Navy was also found, authorities said. The robot was returned to Naval officers.

It's unclear how Cormier allegedly obtained the devices.

What Else We Know

Cormier was charged June 13 with:

• second-degree distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM)
• second-degree possession with intent to distribute CSAM
• third-degree possession of CSAM
• third-degree fortifying a structure with illegal drugs
• third-degree possession of destructive devices (seven counts)
• second-degree manufacturing and distributing controlled dangerous substances (CDS)
• second-degree possessing a firearm while committing a drug offense (four counts)
• third-degree possession of CDS
• fourth-degree possession of a large-capacity magazine

Cormier is scheduled to return to court Aug. 20 for a pre-indictment conference.