TRENTON – A suspended New Jersey state trooper was indicted today for allegedly engaging in a sexually explicit email exchange with an adult woman about a prepubescent girl, during which the soldier and the woman reportedly exchanged sexually explicit photos, including a picture of the girl.
According to officials trooper Jeffrey Reitz, 48, of Williamstown, N.J., was indicted today by a state grand jury on two counts of third-degree possession of explicit images of minors.
Reitz was initially charged and arrested on April 18, 2019. He has been suspended without pay since his arrest.
It is alleged that on December 31, 2014, Reitz engaged in a sexually explicit email exchange with an adult woman, during which the woman proposed that he sexually assault a prepubescent girl.
It is alleged that Reitz asked for a photo of the girl, and the woman responded by emailing Reitz a sexually explicit photo of the girl.
Reitz allegedly sent pictures of his genitals to the woman, both before and after the woman sent the sexually explicit photo of the girl.
The first count of possession of explicit images of minors relates to the sexually explicit photo of the girl sent during that exchange with the woman.
The second count of possession of explicit images of minors relates to additional images of explicit images of minors that were found in an iCloud account that belongs to Reitz following his arrest.
Reitz’s alleged participation in the email exchange with the woman was discovered much later as the result of evidence seized in a separate investigation by the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office.
Reitz was charged in an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Cyber Crimes Bureau. Deputy Attorney General Rachael Weeks presented the indictment to the state grand jury.
Third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. The indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Timothy P. Lydon in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Gloucester County, where Reitz will be ordered to appear at a later date for arraignment.
The indictment charging Reitz is posted with this news release at www.njpublicsafety.com