A Franklin County grand jury Thursday indicted a former art teacher at Spruce Mountain High School in Jay on charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and dissemination of sexually explicit material.

Jan M. Barlow, 48, of Auburn, was initially arrested in March after Superintendent Scott Albert received a complaint Feb. 27 from a parent, and school resource officer Cpl. Anthony York conducted an investigation. A search warrant was obtained by the Jay officer to search Barlow’s house in Auburn to collect evidence.

Albert placed Barlow on paid administrative leave on Feb. 27 pending an investigation. He was released from the Franklin County Detention Center on $5,000 cash bail on March 10 and resigned on March 11.

According to an affidavit filed in a Farmington court by York, the mother of the victim caught Barlow and the student, who was fully dressed, together on the video chat app FaceTime.

At one time, the two allegedly exchanged nude photos of themselves, the affidavit said.

The victim got Barlow’s phone number from his art website and contacted him. The two started chatting. When York asked if the victim had the messages, he was told they were deleted because of space concerns on the phone, the officer wrote.

The victim’s phone, password and charger were given to York to review and he was able to see one of the deleted messages and a video screen recording listed as “no contact.” One video conversation stated, “We need to have a code word on when we can talk. ‘Red’ means we cannot talk. ‘Green’ means we can talk,” the affidavit said.

The phone was given to a detective at the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office so authorities could retrieve the deleted messages and photos, York’s affidavit said.

A conviction on the sexual exploitation of a minor charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison. A conviction on the dissemination charges is punishable by a maximum five years in prison.

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