Anna R. Welsh, a married mother of three small children, was arrested Wednesday on sex crime charges, according to Oregon police.
The 31-year-old Nehalem, Ore., woman allegedly engaged in sex abuse involving three 15- and 16-year-old boys, detectives with the Tillamook County Sheriff's Office told The Oregonian.
"According to investigators, Welsh is accused of engaging in sex acts with at least one of the victims, and also in sending and requesting pornographic images of the victims via electronic means," Tillamook County Sherrif Andy Long told KGW.
Welsh, a former Washington State University track and field athlete, made news last year when she finished second place in the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco. According to a profile of her in the North Coast Citizen, Welsh's husband is an Iraq War veteran.
The Tillamook Headlight Herald notes that Welsh is an aspiring lingerie and swimwear model, who has a profile on the website Model Mayhem.
UPDATE: Dec. 7, 5:20 p.m. -- KATU added that investigators think that the woman sexted with the boys, and said that there could be more victims than the three already reported.
Welsh now faces two counts of using a child in display of sexually explicit conduct, one count of third-degree sodomy and three counts of third-degree sex abuse, according to The Oregonian.
She is being held at Tillamook County Jail in lieu of $119,000 bail, according to officials.
Earlier this year, a Salem, Ore. couple was arrested in connection with a child pornography ring that allegedly involved the filming of sex acts on their own children.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.