NJ Man Who Filmed Foster Children Posed As Young Girl, Sent Nude Photo, Affidavit Says

POINT PLEASANT, NJ — A Point Pleasant man accused of putting cameras in the bedrooms of foster children in his home pretended to be a 10-year-old girl when he uploaded a nude photo of a girl to a social media app, according to court documents.

John C. Olson, 43, has been charged with manufacturing child sexual abuse material, distribution of child sexual abuse material and possession of child sexual abuse material, Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said.

According to the probable cause affidavit filed in the case, Olson uploaded a photo of a nude, prepubescent girl on Kik in March, and then pretended he was a 10-year-old girl sending the image of herself to another Kik user.

That activity was reported by Kik to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and that tip, along with the phone number and email address associated with the account, was passed along to law enforcement, according to the affidavit.

Detectives traced the activity to Olson's home, and on Aug. 22 searched the home and seized electronic devices, authorities said.

While they were searching Olson's home, detectives saw what appeared to be Ring cameras in the children's bedrooms, the affidavit said.

When they questioned Olson, he confirmed his phone number and email address, which matched what Kik had reported, the affidavit said.

Later, when they conducted a forensic search of Olson's phone, they found four photos of a prepubescent girl with her intimate parts exposed, the affidavit said. One photo was zoomed in on the child's intimate parts, the affidavit said.

They also found a Ring app on the phone, with cameras named to match the children's bedrooms and four photos taken from the Ring footage of a prepubescent girl, the affidavit said.

The affidavit does not say when authorities learned foster children had been placed in the home, how many children had been fostered there or for how long.

Olson was arrested Aug. 22 and was being held in the Ocean County Jail as of Friday, but is no longer listed in the inmate roster as of Monday.