Omaha high school security guard arrested sex charges relating to student
OMAHA, Neb. June 24 2022 A 29-year-old man who worked as a security guard at an Omaha high school was in court Thursday to face charges of possessing child porn and enticing a teenager.
Joshua Higgs, who was a contracted security guard at Omaha’s Northwest High School, was arrested on a June 13 warrant filed in Douglas County Court.
He faces one count of sexual assault by way of communications, a Class 1D Felony; one count of possessing child pornography, a Class 2A Felony; and one count of tampering with a witness or informant.
A judge set bond for Higgs at $50,000 on Thursday afternoon.
According to Douglas County Court documents, Higgs’ arrest stems from an initial report taken at 11 a.m. Friday, Feb. 11, from a parent that their 16-year-old was missing and likely was with Higgs.
A Douglas County Sheriff’s deputy said DCSO was able to reach the teen on their phone, who verified they were with Higgs, the documents state. During that call, Higgs was heard telling the teen not to give the deputies any information about him or his vehicle. The youth said the call had made Higgs uncomfortable and that he asked the teen to get out of his vehicle.
The teen began walking home before getting picked up by their father. Upon returning home, the teen shared more details with deputies about the interactions with Higgs, saying he had been texting them since Feb. 15 or 16 to arrange a meeting. During the text exchanges, Higgs made “sexual jokes” directed toward the teen, acknowledging the teen was a minor and saying it “was not a problem.” He suggested the youth lie to their parents, then delete all the messages “so he would not get into trouble,” the documents state. The victim also said they had sent Higgs two photos of the teen wearing only underwear.
Evidence obtained from the teen’s phone included Snapchat and Facebook communications, court documents state. In those communications, Higgs indicated he had been watching her at school, asked her what she was wearing, and discussed various sexual acts and positions, including group acts. He also said he had bought her an appliance to use as a vibrator.
When the minor victim told deputies that when they talked to Higgs about their thoughts of suicide, he asked the teen what their last words to him would be, and then proceeded to make sexually explicit comments.
WOWT
