Former Cleveland bank executive faces 45 sex crime charges dating back to 2004

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) -A former senior vice president at First National Bank in Cleveland is facing 45 counts of sex crimes dating back two decades, including charges involving a five-year-old child.

Joseph Fragapane, 63, of Strongsville, was indicted in December and again this month on charges prosecutors said span from 2004 through 2025. He has pleaded not guilty to the December charges and is out on bond.

Investigation began with cyber tip

The case began when a cyber tip came into the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The center sent the case to the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

“Our investigators began looking into that violation as well as what the conduct was and were able to determine that it was Joseph Fragapane committing these crimes,” said Megan Helton, an assistant prosecuting attorney with the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, which runs Ohio ICAC.

Investigators said Fragapane uploaded nude images of children online, which linked back to his IP address.

Search warrant reveals additional victims

After serving a search warrant at his Strongsville home, investigators said they found more than just those images.

“As we continued to look through his devices, we were then able to determine that there were additional victims that were known to the defendant at different times in his life, and we were able to then talk with those individuals,” Helton said.

According to the indictment, the first victim was five years old and known to Fragapane. Prosecutors said between 2004 and 2005, he kidnapped her, sexually assaulted her and produced child sexual abuse material involving her.

The second victim, also someone he knew, was an adult. Prosecutors said in 2019, Fragapane secretly recorded her without her knowledge or consent, according to the indictment.

“One of the victims is an adult and one of the victims was a child at the time. And so when we see someone who is committing a variety of acts against really anyone he encounters, there is a concern that he was committing any offense that he had an opportunity to commit,” Helton said.

Additional charges involve photoshopped images

Fragapane also faces additional sex crime charges spanning from 2021 through 2025. Prosecutors said investigators found child sexual abuse material on his devices involving other children and women he knew personally.

“He would either obtain photos that he took himself, innocuous photos. So think holiday photos, think neighborhood photos, think cookout photos, where he would then take images of children’s heads and photoshop them onto nude bodies,” Helton said.

Here are the charges Fragapane faces, according to the indictment:

-Kidnapping- F1 (Count One)

-Gross Sexual Imposition- F3 (Counts 2 & 3)

-Illegal Use of Minor in Nudity-Oriented Material or Performance- F2 (Counts 4-12)

-Voyeurism- M1 (Counts 13-15)

-Pandering Sexually-Oriented Matter Involving a Minor or Impaired Person- F2

(Counts 16-25)

-Illegal Use of Minor in Nudity-Oriented Material or Performance- F2

(Counts 26-44)

-Possessing Criminal Tools- F5 (Count 45)

19 Investigates reached out to Fragapane for comment. He has not responded.

A spokesperson for First National Bank said Fragapane no longer works at the bank. She said they “don’t comment on legal matters about current or former employees.”

Fragapane’s attorney told us he is retired and no longer employed. She said he plans to plead not guilty to the new charges.

Prosecutors warn of potential additional victims

As the case heads to court, prosecutors warn there may be more victims still unaccounted for.

“Someone who is in the community is well-trusted, is known by a lot of individuals. There is a concern that person takes advantage of those circumstances, and that’s certainly what we see in this case, that he had a position of power, he had a position of being well-liked in the community, and he is essentially exploiting that,” Helton said.

Fragapane will be arraigned on the new charges next Thursday.

Investigators ask anyone who believes they or their child may have been a victim of sexual assault or exploitation in this case to call the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in Cleveland.

You can call the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office at 216-443-7800.

Need an investigation? Contact 19 Investigates with your request.