An 22-year-old area man has been arrested on charges that he was in possession of child sexual abuse material.

The charges emanated with a CyberTip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey said.

Christopher Lauria, of Barbara Lane, Ocean Township, was arrested on Friday and charged with third-degree possession of child sexual abuse material. Lauria is currently being held in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution pending an initial appearance.

The arrest follows a 4-month investigation by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Computer Crimes Unit and its Monmouth County Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.

The investigation was sparked by a tip received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) from an online service company. NCMEC forwarded the tip to the New Jersey ICAC Regional Task Force before the referral was made to the Prosecutor’s Office for investigation.

The investigation revealed Lauria was using a digital storage program and social media platform to access images and videos of child sexual abuse. The investigation is ongoing.

If convicted of possession of child sexual exploitation material, Lauria faces a sentence of three to five years in prison and parole supervision for life.

— Edited press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office

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