74-year-old James Roberts served as Sicklerville Boy Scout Troop 132’s leader for 40 years before his appalling crimes were uncovered.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Roberts has already confessed to using a file-sharing program to view, obtain, and distribute child pornography. He was caught by the High-Tech Crimes Unit of the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office with multiple devices full of pornographic pictures of children.
In a statement delivered to the New York Post, Kevin Bishop, scout executive and CEO of the Boy Scouts’ Garden State Council, called Roberts’ behavior “abhorrent,” saying that it “runs counter to everything for which the Boy Scouts of America stands.” He also claimed that the allegations against Roberts appear to be unrelated to his work within the organization. The statement concluded:
Nothing is more important than the safety of our youth members. We seek to prevent child abuse through comprehensive policies and procedures to serve as barriers to abuse. These include a thorough screening process for adult leaders and staff, criminal background checks, requiring two or more adult leaders be present with youth at all times during Scouting activities, and the prompt mandatory reporting of any allegation or suspicion of abuse.
Despite those measures, it appears another monster has been stalking the halls of an unwary scout troop. This case will mark at least the sixteenth instance of such abuses formally uncovered. Unfortunately, with people like Roberts able to evade suspicion for more than four decades, it is difficult to know how many others might be silently preying on the children in their care.