Former GOP Official Accused Of Distributing Child Sexual Abuse Images

A high-ranking former Maryland state official who served under Republican Gov. Larry Hogan made his first appearance in federal court on Thursday after he was charged last week with distributing child sexual abuse images.

Luis Borunda, a former deputy secretary of state under Hogan, was charged with two counts of distribution of child pornography, sexual exploitation of a child, and possession of child pornography, according to a federal indictment obtained by HuffPost.

Borunda was initially arrested by local law enforcement in August of last year and charged with sexual solicitation of a minor, after allegedly arranging to meet with an investigator who posed as a 13-year-old girl named “Chloe,” Capital Gazette reported at the time.

According to charging documents cited by the newspaper, Borunda had contacted “Chloe” through an online chat and introduced himself as “Steve.”

Borunda allegedly believed “Chloe” was 13 years old and asked her if she wanted to meet, telling her he was an older man who liked younger girls, according to the Gazette. Borunda also allegedly told her that he had met 15-year-olds in the past and said their meeting would be “hot and naughty.”

The two would eventually move their conversations to Discord, a messaging platform popular among gamers. On Discord, Borunda allegedly sent “Chloe” a highly filtered photo of himself, according to the newspaper.

Authorities made their arrest during a sting operation on Aug. 30, when they caught Borunda attempting to meet “Chloe” in a park, per the Gazette.

According to Borunda’s recently filed federal indictment, he is also accused of producing and distributing child sexual abuse material across state lines and internationally.

Prosecutors noted in the indictment that a video file on a cell phone depicted Borunda performing sexual acts with a “Jane Doe.” It’s unclear whether the Jane Doe was a minor, but prosecutors said this video was sent to an underaged girl to coerce her into sex, according to the document.

Investigators continued to find more child sex abuse material on Borunda’s devices, according to the indictment.

Before being appointed to Hogan’s cabinet, Borunda served on the Maryland Economic Development Commission and the Baltimore Board of Education.

In 2017, President Donald Trump quietly announced Borunda as one of the three officials he intended to appoint to investigate allegations of voter fraud in the 2016 election. Shortly after being appointed, Borunda resigned from the commission that same year for unknown reasons.