A US Army soldier who worked at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort uploaded photos of an underage girl to a Russian website, prosecutors say
- Staff Sgt. Richard Ciccarella pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators about an email address for a Russian website, where prosecutors allege he uploaded topless pictures of a relative, according to multiple news reports.
- Ciccarella was attached to the US Army's communication detail at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, from August 2017 to March 2018 - the same time the photos were uploaded to the website.
- One of the photographs showed an underage girl in underwear next to a Christmas tree, the Miami Herald reported. The picture, the Herald said, was titled: "dirty comments [sic] welcome."
- Investigators were tipped off when they asked him to use his email address to log into the Russian website. The website asked him to input the remaining digits of his government-issued cell phone, which rang and matched the account used for uploading the photos.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
A 34-year-old non-commissioned officer who was attached to the US Army's communication detail at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, admitted to lying to federal agents as they investigated him for allegedly distributing child pornography.
Staff Sgt. Richard Ciccarella pleaded guilty to lying about an email address associated with a username for a Russian website, where prosecutors say he uploaded topless pictures of a relative, according to the Palm Beach Post. Ciccarella, who worked at the Trump resort from August 2017 to March 2018, said he was scared and made the false statements.
During his tenure at the Mar-a-Lago, he used an account, "RICH25N," to upload photographs to the Russian website. Ciccarella, who helped place phone calls for Trump and Vice President Mike Pence at the White House, appears to have used the US Army's occupational designation for a communications specialist for his username.
The duties of a 25N-rated soldier, or a nodal network systems operator, includes "making sure that the lines of communication are always up and running," according to the US Army.
Read more: Chinese woman found guilty of lying to federal agents to gain access to Mar-a-Lago
One of the photographs showed an underage girl in underwear next to a Christmas tree, according to the Miami Herald. The picture was reportedly titled: "dirty comment's (sic) welcome," according to court documents.
"This was the last place I thought I would be," Ciccarella said during his trial on Friday. "I will forever regret my action."
Ciccarella is sentenced to three years of probation but was not charged with uploading child pornography, according to the Miami Herald. Assistant US Attorney Gregory Schiller said the photos did not classify as child pornography, The Post reported.
"Here the lie and the obstruction was to cover up an email address to cover up a much bigger investigation that was going on," Schiller said, according to The Post.
Investigators were tipped off when they asked him to use his email address to log into the Russian website. The website asked him to input the remaining digits of his government-issued cell phone, which rang and matched the account used for uploading the photos, The Post said, citing court records.
Ciccarella is required to reveal all of his internet passwords and will be required to serve 100 hours of community service, according to The Herald. He is barred from having unsupervised contact with minors and will participate in sex offender treatment.
Ciccarella deployed twice to Iraq and enlisted in the military when he was 19, The Post reported. "The worst punishment I could receive is losing my position in the service," he said.