The case against a former Tamaqua cop charged with several federal child pornography offenses as well as producing an animal crush video in which he allegedly had sex with a dog is likely to come to a close this week.
On Sept. 11, U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Saporito Jr. agreed to a Change of Plea Hearing for Christopher Cordes, according to court records. At that hearing scheduled for Sept. 24 at 2 p.m. at US Court in Wilkes-Barre, Cordes plans to enter a guilty plea on five federal charges:
- Coercion and Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Illegal Sexual Activity
- Attempted Receipt of Child Pornography
- Possession of Child Pornography
- Creation of Animal Crush Video
- Production of Child Pornography
According to Cordes’ motion to have a hearing to change his plea from not guilty to guilty, he says he’s had a opportunity to consult with his attorneys and review the evidence the government has against him.
Following that conference, Cordes decided to change his plea to guilty without a plea agreement in place.
Cordes was fired from his job as a Tamaqua police officer in June 2024.
He was indicted by a federal grand jury in October on allegations that he solicited a minor victim to over social media for child pornography. He also used a social media platform to attempt to receive child pornography.
Cordes also allegedly created and sent images to a minor victim of him engaged in sexual activity with animals. When he was arrested, Cordes was in possession of child pornography, prosecutors say.
A fifth charge of production of child pornography was added against Cordes since the beginning of this case. Prosecutors alleged that Cordes attempted to coerce a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct so that he could create pornographic materials to share with others.
The maximum penalty Cordes could face is life imprisonment.
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