Maryland Democrat mayor charged on 56 counts related to child pornography

A Maryland Democrat mayor has been arrested on charges of possession and distribution of child sex abuse material.

College Park Mayor Patrick Wojahn, whose city is just a few miles east of Washington. D.C., was arrested Thursday by the Prince George's County Police Department.

The 47-year-old Wojahn resigned Wednesday evening, ahead of his arrest and after authorities searched his home Tuesday and confiscated "multiple" digital devices.

Wojahn was mayor since 2015 and served on the city council since 2007.

The University of Maryland flagship campus is in College Park. Wojahn has a law degree from Georgetown University and is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School. He is also an LGBT activist.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children notified police Feb. 17 of a suspicious social media account operating in the county, according to nbcwashington.com.

"The image and videos," which the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children believed to be child sex abuse material, "had been uploaded to the social media account in January of 2023," according to a release by county police. "Through various investigative techniques, PGPD investigators discovered the social media account belonged to Wojahn."

Police took Wojahn into custody Thursday morning and charged him with 40 counts of possession of child exploitative material and 16 counts of distribution of child exploitative material, the NBC news outlet also reports.