NEW LEXINGTON, Ohio — An assistant volleyball coach at New Lexington High School was arrested by federal agents on Friday on charges claiming he sexually exploited minors and distributed, received and possessed child pornography.
According to the U.S Attorney's office, Clay Thomas Wolfe, 28, allegedly obtained child pornography from more than 100 victims through Snapchat since 2018. The defendant appeared in federal court in Columbus on Friday afternoon.
Wolfe is accused of acting under the false identity of a 15-year-old girl on Snapchat and used it to solicit child pornography from middle school and high school boys. He allegedly sent the male victims photographs and videos of a nude teenage girl in order to maintain the online persona.
The Snapchat account also contained sexually explicit photographs and videos of minor males as young as 10 and 11 years old.
The known victims resided in various parts of Ohio, as well as other parts of the country including Pennsylvania and Minnesota.
According to Snapchat records, between March 2022 and January 2023, Wolfe engaged in online communications with more than 100 other Snapchat users. A forensic review of Wolfe’s iCloud account also allegedly revealed more than 100 photos and videos of child sexual abuse material.
Sexual exploitation of a minor is a federal crime punishable by a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years up to 30 years in prison. Distribution and receipt of child pornography is punishable by a mandatory term of imprisonment of five years up to 20 years’ incarceration.
A detention hearing is scheduled for June 28.