A Lafayette man has been arrested on possession of child pornography charges; KATC has learned he's a current state employee and former juvenile probation officer.
Jody Osmer, 36, is facing seven charges of possession of pornography involving juveniles under the age of 13. He remained in the parish jail this morning, with bond set at $70,000 for his release.
State officials confirm that Osmer is currently an employee of the state Department of Child and Family Services; he works in an economic stability office. That's the office that handles TANF and SNAP, officials say. We've asked if his arrest has impacted his employment and we're told that no information can be released at this time as it is a personnel matter.
Online records indicate that, in 2017, Osmer was a Probation and Parole Officer for the state's Office of Juvenlie Justice. We reached out to the OJJ this morning, and Beth Touchet-Morgan, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the office, told us that he was a probation officer several years ago.
According to Touchet-Morgan, Osmer was employed with the Office of Juvenile Justice from 8/27/2007 through 9/25/2017. When he separated from the agency he was a Probation and Parole Officer in the Lafayette Office.
"OJJ was informed of the investigation yesterday. As with all ongoing law enforcement investigations concerning past and present employees, OJJ will work in coordination with local and state authorities at their request," she said.
The Attorney General's Cyber Crime Unit says the investigation is ongoing; anyone with information regarding Osmer should call the unit's toll-free hotline at 1-800-256-4506 or their local police department.
