A Tamaqua police officer was hit with charges of having sex with a child, possession of child pornography, and sex with an animal in May by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office.

Christopher J. Cordes, 29, of Nazareth, was immediately suspended from the Tamaqua Police Department and fired soon after.

In October, Cordes was indicted on federal charges of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity, attempted receipt of and possession of child pornography and animal crushing.

With the charges filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District, the state charges against Cordes will not be pursued.

The most recent charges allege that while employed as a Tamaqua police officer, Cordes communicated with at least one minor victim on a social media platform, whom he attempted to solicit for child pornography. Additionally, Cordes is alleged to have used at least one social media platform to attempt to receive child pornography. Cordes is also alleged to have created and then sent images to at least one minor victim and others, depicting himself engaged in sexual activity with animals.

When Cordes was arrested, he was in possession of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The maximum penalty under federal law for the federal offenses is life imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.

The state charges included 21 criminal counts of child sexual abuse, manufacturing child pornography, sexual intercourse with a dog and other offenses.