A 46-year-old vice president of a central New York school board, who gained national attention as a self-described drag performer, now faces federal charges of receiving and possessing child pornography and four state counts of endangering the welfare of a child, after investigators say they found images and videos of infant sexual abuse on his phone.
Travis Barr Longo, vice president of the Cazenovia Central School District Board of Education, was arrested by New York State Police following a child exploitation investigation, Fox News Digital reported. He made a virtual federal court appearance on a Saturday on the pornography charges and resigned from the board Monday evening, minutes after his fellow board members voted unanimously to begin removal proceedings.
The charges paint a grim picture. And they raise a question parents across the country are entitled to ask: how did this man end up on a school board in the first place?
The U.S. Attorney's Office stated that a search of Longo's cell phone on June 18 uncovered "numerous images and videos of child pornography," including material that defies description in a general-audience publication. Federal prosecutors said the cache included "several videos depicting the sexual abuse of infants that Longo had received from other users of an internet-based messaging application."
That alone would be enough to turn any stomach. But court documents reviewed by WSYR-TV added another layer. Police recovered chats on the device in which Longo "discussed with other individuals his sexual interest in children, including a minor male child known to him and to whom he has had access."
That detail, a child known to him, a child he had access to, is the kind of fact that should keep every parent in that district awake at night.
The state charges allege Longo engaged in a pattern of sexually explicit digital communications with a child under the age of 12. If convicted on the federal counts, he faces a mandatory minimum of five years in federal prison.
Longo won election to a three-year term on the Cazenovia board in May 2024. He was frequently described in media appearances as "the first drag performer elected to a school board," performing under the stage name "Anita Buffem." That identity was central to his public profile and speaking engagements.
None of that cultural novelty matters now. What matters is that a man entrusted with governance over children's education allegedly spent his private hours collecting videos of infant sexual abuse and chatting about his sexual interest in minors, including one he knew personally.
The case fits a disturbing pattern of public figures in education who exploit their positions of trust. A New York City theater teacher was recently sentenced to 12 years in federal prison after the FBI uncovered a massive collection of child abuse material. The settings differ. The betrayal is the same.
The Cazenovia Board of Education issued a statement demanding Longo's immediate resignation and condemning the allegations. The board said it was "shocked, deeply saddened, and outraged by these serious allegations" and extended "support and assistance to all children and families involved."
"Our response reflects the Board of Education's deep and unwavering commitment to every child's safety, and well being. Our charge to protect every student in our District is our moral and ethical duty, along with a responsibility to the sworn oath that is our legal obligation."
The board also acknowledged the judicial process, stating it stood "strong in condemning these alleged actions, while also acknowledging that it is the responsibility of the judicial system to determine guilt or innocence."
On Monday evening, the board voted unanimously to begin formal removal proceedings. Longo resigned shortly afterward, according to a post by Cazenovia Schools Superintendent Kevin Linck. Fox News Digital requested comment from the board but did not immediately receive a response.
The resignation spared the district a drawn-out removal fight. But it did not spare the community the damage already done. Cazenovia, a small district in the center of New York state, now has to explain to families how a man facing these charges sat in a position of authority over their children's schools for more than a year.
Cases like Longo's do not exist in isolation. Across the country, school districts have faced reckoning after reckoning as officials entrusted with children's welfare turn out to be unworthy of that trust. A Denver school board unanimously fired a teacher accused of pressuring students into inappropriate conduct in graded assignments. A former Des Moines superintendent was sentenced to two years after criminal fraud came to light.
Different offenses, different scales of harm. But a common thread runs through them: the institutions charged with protecting children failed to catch the problem before it exploded.
The federal charges against Longo carry weight. Receipt of child pornography is not a gray area. The material described by prosecutors, videos of infant sexual abuse obtained through a messaging application, represents some of the most severe conduct federal law addresses in this category. The five-year mandatory minimum exists precisely because Congress recognized the gravity of the offense.
The state charges add four counts of child endangerment, tied to the alleged pattern of sexually explicit communications with a child under 12. Together, the federal and state cases suggest a scope of conduct that went well beyond passive possession.
And the chat records, in which Longo allegedly discussed his sexual interest in a specific minor known to him, raise questions that investigators and prosecutors will need to pursue. Who is that child? Is that child safe now? Were there others?
Several critical questions remain open. It is not clear from available reporting whether Longo has entered a plea or retained legal counsel who has issued any public statement. The specific messaging application referenced by federal prosecutors has not been publicly identified. The identity of the minor referenced in the chat records has not been disclosed, nor has the full scope of the alleged communications pattern underlying the state charges.
The U.S. Attorney's Office press release identifies Longo as a "Madison County man," consistent with Cazenovia's location. The New York State Police confirmed the arrest following their child exploitation investigation.
The pattern of public officials caught in criminal conduct and forced to resign in disgrace is not limited to education. A Kentucky Democrat ended his primary bid after security cameras caught him in the act. The common denominator is simple: people who seek public trust and then betray it.
Longo's resignation closes one chapter. The criminal cases will open others. But for the families of Cazenovia, and for every parent who watched this man celebrated as a trailblazer, the lesson is blunt.
Novelty is not a credential. Celebrity is not a background check. And no amount of cultural applause substitutes for the hard, unglamorous work of making sure the people who govern children's schools are fit to be near children at all.
The voters of Cazenovia trusted their school board. The system owes them an answer for how that trust was so badly misplaced.
