Coaldale Mayor Richard Corkery faces 28 counts of child pornography charges stemming from downloading pictures of naked boys on a computer he used at work.

Corkery, elected to a second term as mayor in 2009, is expected to turn himself into police at 3:30 today at the office of District Judge Casimir Kosciolek, Lansford."It was a long investigation and we worked really hard on it," said Nesquehoning Police Chief Sean Smith.Borough council president Susan Solt said she was "dumbstruck" by the news."I'm very upset," she said. "I'm in shock."Efforts to reach Corkery for comment this morning were unsuccessful.According to a press release issued this morning by Assistant Carbon County District Attorney Joseph Matika, Nesquehoning police began an investigation on April 6, sparked by allegations that Corkery "was involved in the downloading and viewing of child pornography at his place of employment, WLSH radio station."During the course of this investigation, a forensic examination of the computer used by the defendant revealed the existence of numerous images of naked, underaged boys."The Nesquehoning police interviewed numerous individuals, the results of which showed that only the defendant had access to the computer in question at the time these pictures of child pornography were downloaded."Corkery, who moved to Coaldale from the Philadelphia area several years ago, routinely led borough council in reciting the Lord's Prayer at the beginning of every meeting.More information is expected to be released today at Corkery's preliminary arraignment.