Man jailed for posting images of woman online

NORRISTOWN >> A Lancaster man will spend several months behind bars after he admitted to harassing a Pottstown woman with whom he once had a relationship by disseminating intimate images of her on social media.

Jose Maria Ramirez, 47, of the 400 block of Howard Avenue, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 3 to 23 months in the county jail after he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of unlawful dissemination of intimate images and harassment in connection with incidents that occurred in November 2020.

Judge Steven T. O’Neill also ordered Ramirez to complete one year of probation consecutive to parole, meaning Ramirez will be under court supervision for about three years.

As a condition of the sentence, the judge ordered Ramirez to have no contact with the victim in any form, including via social media.

Ramirez also must complete an anger management counseling program as a condition of the sentence.

Assistant District Attorney Robert Joseph Waeltz Jr. sought a jail sentence against Ramirez.

“This case really came down to control. During the course of their relationship, the defendant sought to control this woman. And when that relationship ended he did the unspeakable. He disseminated those intimate, private moments…when that relationship ended and he no longer had control over her,” Waeltz argued, adding the incident caused the victim emotional distress. “Your entire sense of security is just obliterated. It’s hard to continue to have trust in any of your future relationships when somebody you thought you loved and cared about violated you in that way.”

Defense lawyer George Griffith Jr. represented Ramirez.

An investigation began in November 2020, when the victim reported to Pottstown police that she became aware through others that Ramirez had posted intimate photos and videos of her online, including a video on the social media app TikTok and photos on Facebook, some of which depicted the woman nude, according to the criminal complaint filed by Pottstown Police Corporal Todd Istenes.

During the investigation, police also uncovered a Craigslist post from the Lancaster area that listed the victim’s phone number and the caption, “Looking for a good time,” according to the criminal complaint. The woman told police she received phone calls from various people asking if she was still available.

When police caught up to Ramirez in Lancaster he “advised that he was angry because (the woman) betrayed him and that was why he posted the images online,” Istenes wrote in the arrest affidavit.

“He also admitted that he knew that it was illegal to do so,” Istenes wrote.

By pleading guilty to the charges, Ramirez admitted that with the intent to harass, annoy or alarm a former sexual or intimate partner he disseminated a visual depiction of the former partner in a state of nudity or engaged in sexual contact.

A charge of stalking was dismissed against Ramirez at sentencing time in exchange for his guilty plea to the other charges.