A Norwich Township firefighter has been arrested on child pornography charges.
Caden Woodward, 22, of Hilliard, is accused of knowingly buying nine nude pictures from a 17-year-old girl over CashApp, a mobile payment platform, using the name “Woody,” according to Franklin County Municipal Court records.
Woodward was arrested Wednesday and charged with possessing or viewing images of “a minor in nudity-oriented material,” a felony of the fifth degree. According to court records, the material, received on Nov. 22, 2022, involved nude images of a teenage girl who is not a child or ward of Woodward, according to a criminal complaint.
Hilliard Police Department received a confidential tip about a CashApp account that was being investigated for selling pornographic images of minors. A subpoena sent to Block, Inc, the company that owns CashApp, showed accounts associated with “Woody” belonged to Caden Woodward, and included a date of birth and Social Security number matching Woodward’s, according to court records.
A chat log between “Woody” and the account included a price list clearly listing the ages of the minors in the images, according to court records.
Woodward was hired by Norwich Township as a full-time firefighter on Oct. 10, 2022, and was arrested the day after his one-year anniversary. He has been placed on paid administrative leave by the township.
The Norwich Township Fire Department services the Hilliard area and consists of about 90 full-time firefighters at three stations, including a five-member administrative staff, according to its website.
