A teacher at an elementary school in Cary, North Carolina has been charged with multiple counts of sexual exploitation of a minor after a joint investigation between local law enforcement and the FBI.

Chip Anthony Hollingsworth, age 39, was arrested as a result of a joint investigation by local law enforcement and the FBI.  Hollingsworth faces 18 counts of second-degree exploitation of a minor.

Arrest documents show that Hollingsworth was in possession of
at least 18 videos of children between the ages of 5 and 12 performing sexual acts.

The warrant details state that Hollingsworth also made duplicates of some of the videos and that some of the videos show 5-year-old children being molested by adults.

Arrest records show that that on December  15 of 2017 Hollingsworth was charged with one count of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.

Hollingsworth is being held on a $1 million bond at the Wake County Detention Center. When he is released, court documents state that he is banned from contact with anyone under the age of 8.

Chip Anthony Hollingsworth

Hollingsworth taught 4th grade at Cardinal Charter Academy in Cary, North Carolina and had previously taught at River Mill Academy in Graham during the 2016-17 school year.

School officials indicated that he resigned from River Mill at the end of 2017.

Law enforcement indicated that no students at Cardinal Charter appear to be involved at this time.

School officials from Cardinal Charter released a statement to media:

We have been made aware of allegations and the arrest of one of our teachers regarding activities that occurred outside of school. Our highest priority is the safety and security of our students and the employee is on leave pending the outcome of the investigation. We are not at liberty to discuss personnel issues and defer to the Cary police department for further statements.