The deputy press secretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has been arrested on charges he used the Internet to try to seduce a child.
Authorities say Brian Doyle of Silver Spring, Maryland was arrested at his home Tuesday on 23 charges related to the use of a computer to seduce a child and transmit harmful material to a minor.
The charges were issued out of Polk County, Florida, where investigators say Doyle contacted a person he thought was a 14-year-old girl whose profile was posted on the Internet. They say Doyle first initiated a sexually explicit conversation with her on March 12.
Authorities said in a statement that Doyle told the decoy who he was and gave her his office telephone number and government-issued cell phone number. They allege he sent her hard-core pornographic movie clips via the Internet.
A Homeland Security department official tells the Associated Press the agency takes the allegations very seriously and will cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation.
Doyle is currently awaiting extradition to Florida. Investigators also say he sent the decoy pictures of himself, but that they were not sexually explicit.
Some information for this report was provided by AP .