Child porn, Whitefish Bay day care employee accused of possession

WHITEFISH BAY, Wis. - A former Whitefish Bay day care employee is accused of possession of child pornography after a months-long investigation.

What they're saying:

In a Facebook post, the Whitefish Bay Police Department said 21-year-old Nicholas Otero was arrested and charged with three felonies in the case. Court records show his bond was set at $2,500 on Tuesday.

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The department's Facebook post went on to say Otero worked part-time at the Jewish Community Center's day care in Whitefish Bay, and there is no evidence that any children at the day care were victims.

Otero was arrested on Friday. A Jewish Community Center spokesperson said in a statement that Otero was suspended but subsequently resigned from his position.

Full Jewish Community Center statement:

"This is an extremely disturbing and serious issue that we take very seriously. The safety, security, and well-being of the children in our care is our highest priority, and we are partnering with our families to ensure they have accurate information.

"Upon notification by the Whitefish Bay Police, this individual was immediately suspended from employment and subsequently resigned from their position. We can confirm that this individual passed multiple criminal background checks and has no previous charges. They also completed all of our mandated abuse prevention trainings, which are required of all employees.

"We have been assured by the police that this individual was NOT charged with creating any child pornography, and that there are NO pictures or images of any children or staff in our programs. We can also confirm that police have NOT identified our facility or our programs for any investigation, and NONE of the evidence was related to any of our devices or our online sites.

"Additional questions should be directed to the Whitefish Bay Police Department as they continue their investigation."

Tip prompts investigation

Dig deeper:

Whitefish Bay police received a tip in July 2024 about potential child pornography that had been shared on X, formerly Twitter. The Wisconsin Department of Justice looked into the suspect's account and traced an IP address to a Whitefish Bay home.

In March 2025, Whitefish Bay police got a cybertip from Discord about two apparent child pornography files that were uploaded to the site. A trace of the IP address in that case linked it to the same Whitefish Bay home.

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Otero was then developed as a suspect. In an interview with police, a criminal complaint states Otero said he "saw some things online that he probably shouldn't have." He confirmed the X account involved in the first tip and the Discord account involved in the second tip were both his. He said he and he alone had access to those accounts, as well as his cellphone and computer. 

When shown three files recovered through the investigation, the complaint states Otero said he considered all three to be child pornography.