Hoover substitute teacher arrested on child pornography charges

HOOVER, Ala. (WBRC) - A man who worked as a substitute teacher for Hoover City Schools was arrested last Thursday on multiple child pornography charges.

Russell John Sweeney, 48, of Hoover, was booked in the Jefferson County Jail on $60,000 bond and charged with two counts of possession of child pornography, a class C felony.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced the arrest on Tuesday, saying Sweeney was taken into custody by Special Agents of the Attorney General’s Office along with assistance from the Hoover Police Department and the University of Alabama Police Regional Evidence and Analysis and Cyber Intelligence Team.

Hoover City Schools said in a statement that Sweeney has been a substitute teacher for the school system for just over a year.

“He cleared all state-mandated background checks,” the statement read. “His service as a substitute teacher has been without incident or observed misconduct. We have no reason to believe that any of the allegations in question involve or affect any Hoover student.”

The school district said they will continue to cooperate with authorities as they continue the investigation.

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