Ex-Weapons Inspector Charged in Child-Sex Sting

STROUDSBURG, Pa. -- A former U.N. weapons inspector in Iraq is facing child-sex charges.

Scott Ritter, of Delmar, N.Y., is charged in Pennsylvania with unlawful sexual contact with a minor for alleged online exchanges with police posing as a 15-year-old girl. The Pocono Record first reported the case Thursday.

Monroe County authorities say they traced the exchange through his cell phone number. Police say Ritter gave them a video of him masturbating during an Internet chat.

The 48-year-old Ritter has been free on bail since a December court appearance. He has acknowledged facing similar 2001 charges in New York that were dismissed.

Ritter declined to comment Thursday to reporters outside his home.

He resigned in 1998 after seven years as a U.N. weapons inspector and was a harsh critic of the war in Iraq.