Tower Lakes police officer accused of having child pornography of female under age of 13

A Tower Lakes police officer who lives in Salem, Wisconsin, has been charged with 10 counts of possession of child pornography, according to a news release from the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

Mark A. Paglini, 47, was arrested Wednesday and is being held in the Kenosha County Jail on $100,000 bond, according to the jail website. In order to be released, he must post the entire bond amount, according to a jail official.

Paglini is accused of knowingly possessing pictures of a child engaging in sexually explicit conduct and is charged with Class D felonies, which could result in a fine up to $100,000 and up to 25 years in prison, along with a fine of $500 for each photo he possessed.

Paglini is accused of sharing images of a 10- to 11-year-old female that he knew, taken between 2005-'06, in an online forum. Related accounts on the forum then attempted to use the images to have a "meet and greet" with other users.

Police say that some of the images shared were "possible hidden camera images." Ontario Provincial Police identified the female in the photos before Paglini's arrest.

While serving a warrant on Paglini's Salem home, police found DVDs, thumb drives and a Toshiba Satellite laptop, seized from what they referred to as the “man cave” in the residence.

Forensic examiners found what appeared to be child pornography on the hard drive of the laptop, with photos of a female likely younger than 13. Examiners found sexually explicit photos of the female as well as photos of her performing sexual acts.

The officer, who formerly worked for the Prairie Grove and Lakemoor police departments, is set for a preliminary hearing Friday, according to the jail official.

Paglini was arrested Wednesday after law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at his Wisconsin home.

Lakemoor Village President Ryan “Todd” Weihofen confirmed Paglini worked for the department for about 10 years. He said Paglini “resigned” more than two years ago for “personal reasons.”

Weihofen knew little of the investigation or the charges against Paglini.

“He was one of our officers; I knew him as one of our officers,” Weihofen said. “Obviously, any crime against children is unconscionable. Crimes against children cannot be tolerated. It’s terrible.”

The investigation is led by the WDOJ Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The U.S Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations, the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office, Ontario Provincial Police, Tower Lakes Police Department, Prairie Grove Police Department and Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office also assisted.

Check back to www.nwherald.com for updates.