Rhode Island correctional officer allegedly produced child porn

A high-ranking official with the Rhode Island Department of Corrections is accused of producing child pornography, officials announced last week.

Seth Crosby, 46, is charged with two counts of producing child pornography and one count of video voyeurism, according to court records.

He is deputy director of the Office of Investigations and Intelligence with RIDOC, a former Air Force captain, and retired Johnston, RI police, according to his LinkedIn.

“It’s a terrible misunderstanding,” Crosby said WJAR following his indictment last week. The news station reported that he tried to record two teenagers having sex in the basement of his home in Cranston, RI.

“According to both juveniles, while engaged in sexual activities, they noticed a hand holding a phone with a lens pointed in their direction” last month, prosecutors said in court Wednesday, WJAR reported.

Investigators said Crosby’s phone was creating media files at the time of the incident, the news station reported.

Providence Journal reported that Crosby’s wife and the female juvenile, who is a relative of the family, then filed a complaint with the Rhode Island State Police.

The couple also reported an incident in 2021 where Crosby allegedly hid a camera to record the girl showering. Crosby claimed it was there to monitor something unrelated, it Newspaper reported.

Crosby’s attorney did not return a request for comment Sunday night but said Boston Globe that the fees are “completely uncharacteristic.”

RIDOC said Crosby, who is a deputy chief inspector, was placed on paid administrative leave. The department declined to comment on personnel matters.