A U.S. House of Representatives Sergeant at Arms employee was arrested yesterday, charged by police with 10 felony counts of possessing child pornography.
Stefan Bieret, 41, an Operations Assistant to House Sergeant at Arms William J. Walker, was arrested by police in Fairfax County, Virginia. Detectives executing a search warrant of his home recovered multiple electronics and arrested Bieret.
Police said the investigation began with a tip received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) about a potentially illegal image uploaded to a Dropbox account. NCMEC notified the Northern Virginia Washington, D.C. Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force about their CyberTipline lead. Police learned the Dropbox account’s owner resides in Burke, an unincorporated section of Fairfax County with fewer than 60,000 people.
“Detectives from our Major Crimes Bureau’s Missing and Exploited Persons Squad were notified in August and assumed the investigation,” said a police spokesperson, adding, “Detectives executed a search warrant on the Dropbox account and discovered additional images of child sexual abuse material.”
Further search warrants helped detectives learn the Dropbox account owner’s identity and they allege it belongs to Bieret. After his arrest, the Sergeant at Arms assistant was taken to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center where he is being held without bond, according to a statement released on the department’s website.
The Sergeant at Arms is the chief law enforcement and protocol officer of the House of Representatives and is responsible for maintaining order in the House side of the United States Capitol complex. The Sergeant at Arms reviews and implements all issues relating to the safety and security of members of Congress and the Capitol complex. A voicemail message Saturday said their office was closed until Monday, when contacted for comment about Bieret’s arrest.
Bieret previously worked for the Capitol Police, serving in a civilian role in the Security Services Bureau front office from April 2019 to September 2020, according to RollCall.
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