The FBI is cracking down on child pornographers and those in possession of the material, a spokesman said after the recent addition of 30-year old Eric Toth to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted List as number 1, replacing Osama Bin Laden.
“This nomination by us of Eric Toth is a reflection of what the bureau does and our changing mission,” he added.
Toth, who taught third-grade at a Washington D.C. elementary school in 2008, was fired after a coworker found a school camera in his possession containing sexually explicit photographs. He hasn’t been seen since, although his car was found at a local airport afterward containing a suicide note; no body was found.
“We don’t have a belief nor do we have any proof that he committed suicide,” Special Agent Ronald Hosko said.
Officials believe he is working in some teaching capacity–perhaps tutoring, or advertising for those services–and has used the alias David Bussone. They are offering up to $100,000 as a reward for information leading to his capture.
The feds are using Toth as a poster boy for a new, stronger initiative to catch those involved with child pornography; a recent sting in Massachusetts saw 32 men arrested and charged in the past week after targeting porn-sharing sites which have images of children posted. State police superintendent Col. Marian McGovern said the arrests are a “stern message to those who prey on these children and support the evil trade that exploits them.”