Staff Report

Robert B. Fowerbaugh

SYRACUSE — A Syracuse man faces six charges of child pornography possession after printing off pornographic images at a local pharmacy.

Robert B. Fowerbaugh, 51, 411 N. Main St. Apt. 1, Syracuse, is charged with three counts of possession of child pornography and one count of possession of methamphetamine, all level 5 felonies; three counts of possession of child pornography, all level 6 felonies; possession of marijuana, a class B misdemeanor; and possession of paraphernalia, a class C misdemeanor.

On March 16, Syracuse Police officers began an investigation on an individual printing photographs of child pornography at CVS Pharmacy in Syracuse.

According to court documents, the store’s manager said that on March 15, a man had been developing multiple child pornographic images at one of the store’s photo kiosks. The man printed multiple images of nude female children. One of the photos showed a child engaging in an inappropriate act with an adult man.

The first time the man was discovered printing these types of images was Nov. 11, 2021. The man left some of the photographs at a kiosk and another customer found them and gave them to an employee. CVS employees then recovered more of the photographs inside the kiosk and reported the incident to police. The photographs depicted images of multiple nude females under the age of 18.

Officers reviewed the store’s surveillance footage of the man’s appearance. On March 17, a Syracuse Police officer saw a man matching the general description of their suspect. The man identified himself as Fowerbaugh.

On March 18, a Syracuse Police detective met with a CVS employee, who said she was working on March 15 when the suspect printed child pornography from the photo kiosk. She told the detective she believed she could identify the suspect if she saw a photograph of him. Upon being provided a photo lineup of several people, the employee identified Fowerbaugh as the person who had printed multiple photos of child pornography.

On March 22, Syracuse Police officers went to speak with Fowerbaugh. During the interview, Fowerbaugh said he printed child pornography on six occasions at the Syracuse CVS. He told officers he was currently in possession of the photographs and that they were contained in a wooden box with a brass lock in his bedroom. Fowerbaugh also said there was an amount of marijuana and methamphetamine inside his home.

Officers obtained a search warrant for Fowerbaugh’s home and found several photos depicting child pornography of children under the age of 18 in a state of nudity. They also found photos of children engaging in inappropriate activity with adults. Two sex dolls were also found in Fowerbaugh’s bedroom.

Fowerbaugh had children’s clothing in his room, which he would use to dress the dolls. Officers found about 9.4 grams of methamphetamine, multiple scales, and under 30 grams of marijuana in the home. There was also a computer in Fowerbaugh’s home that was powered on. The Internet browser was open to a child pornography website.

Fowerbaugh is currently on pretrial recognizance release for methamphetamine possession, driving while suspended, and possession of paraphernalia.

For this case, Fowerbaugh was booked in the Kosciusko County Jail on March 22, with a $50,250 surety and cash bond. As part of his bond conditions, Fowerbaugh cannot have any contact with any minor under the age of 16.