Former volunteer facing child porn charge

Jan. 12--A Fort Worth man who volunteered with abused Parker County children is now facing a child pornography allegation in addition to child sexual assault charges.

Roy Glenn Ward, 62, of Fort Worth, Wednesday was booked into the Parker County Jail on a post indictment warrant for possession of child pornography and released the same day on $25,000 bond.

According to jail records, Ward was alleged to have possessed child pornography on Sept. 21.

The indictment was still sealed and unavailable to the public Friday afternoon, according to the district clerk's office, so additional details were unavailable.

It was unclear whether the charge relates to three other indictments a grand jury handed down in October, including indecency with a child by exposure and two charges of sexual assault of a child.

Ward, who went by the nickname "Cobra" in his capacity as a volunteer, was initially arrested Aug. 16 after a 16-year-old girl reported that she had been sexually assaulted by him, including between March and June.

The teen said the abuse began when she was 15, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The girl was introduced to Ward through the local Guardians of the Children chapter after she reported previous sexual abuse.

The Guardians of the Children Steel Horses chapter said Ward resigned from the group in February and was not a volunteer with the group during the dates of alleged abuse noted in the probable cause affidavit.

The group said it has several measures in place to try to protect children from abuse, including a background check that includes CPS and criminal history, a period of training before seeing children and policies that include requiring two members be present with children.

"Mr. Ward told us he wanted to go 'in a different direction' in his efforts to help kids in need and felt he could no longer operate under the rules and restrictions that Guardians of the Children require of their members," the chapter's vice president and secretary told the Democrat shortly after Ward's arrest on Aug. 16.

The group said that after Ward resigned from the group in February, they assigned the family new liaisons and that other members were unaware that Ward was still involved in the life of the girl.

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