Border Patrol Agent Charged in Morris County with Attempted Sexual Assault of a Minor

Authorities allege the defendant engaged in sexually explicit online conversations and sent explicit material to an undercover agent posing as a 13-year-old child.

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ - Federal and local prosecutors announced the arrest of Harry Marvelle Peless III, 51, of Newport, Michigan, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent, on charges related to online communications with an undercover officer posing as a minor child. Peless was arrested on July 25, 2025, following a joint investigation involving the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and federal prosecutors in Michigan.

Investigators allege that beginning in September 2024, Peless engaged in near-daily sexually explicit conversations with an undercover law enforcement officer whom he believed to be a 13-year-old girl. According to the criminal complaint, Peless sent explicit videos of himself and an item of child sexual abuse material to the undercover persona. Authorities say he also made repeated requests for the purported minor to run away with him to engage in sexual activity. Evidence shows that Peless accessed the online account used for the communications while he was on duty as a Border Patrol agent.

As a result of the investigation, New Jersey prosecutors charged Peless with:

• Second-degree Attempted Sexual Assault

• Second-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child – Distribution of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM)

• Third-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child – Sexual Conduct

• Third-degree Obscenity

• Fourth-degree Attempted Criminal Sexual Conduct

At the federal level, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan charged Peless with Attempted Transfer of Obscene Material to a Minor. Additional details on the federal case can be found on the U.S. Department of Justice website.

The case is being prosecuted federally by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eaton Brown and was investigated with the assistance of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General.

Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll credited the efforts of the ICAC Task Force, emphasizing the importance of interagency cooperation in addressing crimes against children.

Officials remind the public that a criminal complaint is merely an accusation, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.