Netflix’s ‘Cheer’ star Jerry Harris charged in child porn investigation, feds say
Jerry Harris, who starred in Netflix’s “Cheer” as a member of the Navarro College cheerleading team, has been arrested following a child pornography investigation.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Illinois announced the arrest of Harris, 21, on Thursday. Harris, who was 19 when the alleged crimes began, is accused of enticing a 13-year-old boy to send him nude photos and videos, according to court documents.
USA Today first reported on allegations against Harris earlier this week with a story about 14-year-old twin brothers who say they were sexually harassed by the actor.
A parent of the boys contacted law enforcement officials regarding the allegations, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday.
Harris allegedly contacted one of the boys on Instagram and later Snapchat, where they exchanged sexual images, records show.
Harris also allegedly asked the boy to perform oral sex on him while they were at cheerleading competitions, according to the complaint.
One of the twins said Harris was “touchy” and did “odd things” to him and his brother, according to the complaint. Harris also contacted one of the boys asking for nude photos and to have sex, to which the boy said no, court documents say.
A spokesperson for Harris disputed the USA Today report.
“We categorically dispute the claims made against Jerry Harris, which are alleged to have occurred when he was a teenager,” the spokesperson told ABC News. “We are confident that when the investigation is completed the true facts will be revealed.”
But Harris told federal law enforcement officials on Monday that he sent and received nude photos and videos with one of the boys from December 2018 to March of this year, according to the complaint. Harris also said he tried to get the boy to perform oral sex on him on two occasions.
Harris reportedly told officials he also made sexual advances toward the other brother, the complaint says.
Harris told investigators he asked for and received child porn from between 10 and 15 people he knew were minors, according to the complaint.
One of the boys said Harris sent him between $2,000 and $3,000 for naked photos and videos this summer, documents allege.
Officials searched Harris’ Naperville, Illinois, home Monday, federal officials said. Harris is due in court Thursday afternoon and is currently facing one charge of production of child pornography.
If convicted, Harris faces at least 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“Cheer” was based at Corsicana, Texas’ Navarro College, which is home to a nationally known cheerleading team.
This story was originally published September 17, 2020 at 1:23 PM with the headline "Netflix’s ‘Cheer’ star Jerry Harris charged in child porn investigation, feds say."