A well-known figure in Rockdale County community affairs was arrested on child pornography charges, officials said.
Gary Stewart Bridgewater, 56, was taken into custody May 31 after sheriff’s deputies, acting on a tip from the GBI, found electronic devices in his home that they said contained multiple images of child porn Bridgewater allegedly downloaded. Printed material also was found, deputies said.
“It's very hurtful, it's sad, there's not even words to describe it,” neighbor Allison Stephenson told Channel 2 Action News.
Bridgewater was a member of the Rockdale County Rotary Club and at one time was a community adviser at the Rockdale Career Academy, the news station reported.
“Whether it's someone that's well known in the community or someone no one would know at all, the sheriff of Rockdale County takes all crime here serious," sheriff’s spokesman Michael Meyers said.
Bridgewater has bonded out of jail and is facing 15 counts of sexual exploitation of children, Channel 2 reported.
“If the charges do go through and he's found guilty, then he needs to pay the price for it,” Stephenson said.
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