EATON, Ohio — A former sheriff’s deputy who was a resource officer at a school in western Ohio was sentenced Monday to 18 months in prison after he was convicted last month of multiple charges for the sexual battery of a student.

Mason Williams, 26, of Eaton, also must register as sex offender for the rest of his life when he’s released from prison, according to a news release from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

“You can’t do your job of keeping kids safe at school when you lack the judgment to know that students are off-limits for sexual relationships,” Attorney General Yost said in a statement. “He’s an embarrassment to the badge and he has rightfully earned the label of sex offender.”

Williams was a deputy for the Preble County Sheriff’s Office and was the resource officer at National Trail High School in New Paris, Ohio, which is west of Dayton near the Indiana border. He was arrested in March after being accused of having an inappropriate relationship with an 18-year-old student.

Ohio law prohibits those in a position of power from engaging in sex with a student enrolled at the school where they work, regardless of the student’s age or whether the two consider the relationship to be consensual, prosecutors say.

“Parents shouldn’t have to worry about predators when they send their kids to school,” Yost said in an earlier statement. “There is no age or no so-called consent that makes a school employee having sex with a student appropriate.”

In November, Williams was convicted of three third-degree felonies — two counts of sexual battery and one count of tampering with evidence. Investigators discovered Williams deleted electronic correspondence with the victim, prompting the tampering charge.

The U.S. Geological Survey reports that a 3.3-magnitude earthquake struck Monday morning less than two miles northwest of Chesapeake, Ohio, in far southern Ohio along the Ohio River.

Chesapeake is a village of around 730 people in Lawrence County, located across the Ohio River from Huntington, W.Va. and about 131 miles from Columbus.

The earthquake occurred at 9:39 a.m. at a depth of more than 14 miles below the surface, the USGS reported.

Residents in the area likely felt a weak to light shake, the USGS reported, but no damage.

According to the USGS Community Internet Intensity Map, the quake was felt not only in Chesapeake, but in Brentwood, Proctorville and Rome to the east and all the way to Ironton to the west in Ohio.

Besides Huntington in West Virginia, which is home to Marshall University, the map indicates the tremor was felt in Ashland, Barboursville and Milton.

jwilhelm@dispatch.com

BOSTON (AP) — More suspected drone sightings in the eastern U.S. led to a temporary airspace shutdown at an Air Force base in Ohio and arrests near Boston’s Logan International Airport, as elected officials increased their push for action to identify and stop the mysterious unmanned flights.

Drones flying around Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, forced base officials to close the airspace for about four hours late Friday into early Saturday, said Robert Purtiman, a base spokesperson.

READ MORE: Schumer calls on U.S. agencies to use advanced technology to identify mysterious drones

It is the first time drones have been spotted at the base, one of the largest in the world, and no sightings have been reported since early Saturday, Purtiman said Monday. He would not say how many drones were flying in the area, adding that they ranged in size and that they did not impact any base facilities.

In Boston, city police arrested two men accused of operating a drone “dangerously close” to Logan Airport on Saturday night. Authorities said an officer using drone monitoring technology detected the aircraft and the location of the operators. A third man who fled police remains at large. Authorities said the two men face trespassing charges, and could face more charges and fines.

Boston police urged drone operators to adhere to federal safety guidelines.

“Even small drones pose significant risks, including the potential for catastrophic damage to airplanes and helicopters. Near-collisions can cause pilots to veer off course, putting lives and property at risk,” police said in social media posts.

National security officials have said the drones recently spotted in the eastern part of the country don’t appear to be signs of foreign interference or a public safety threat. But because they can’t say with certainty who is responsible for the sudden swarms of drones — or how they can be stopped — leaders of both political parties are demanding better technology and powers to deal with the drones.

“There’s a lot of us who are pretty frustrated right now,” Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said on “Fox News Sunday,” as drone sightings were being reported in his state. “‘We don’t know’ is not a good enough answer.”

Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer on Sunday called for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to deploy better drone-tracking technology to New York and New Jersey to identify the drones and their operators. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said federal officials had agreed to send a drone detection system to the state.

“New Yorkers have tremendous questions about it,” Schumer, the Senate majority leader, told reporters of the drone sightings. “We are going to get the answers for them.”

READ MORE: What we know about the mysterious drones flying over New Jersey

The federal government did little to answer those questions in its own media briefings over the weekend. “There’s no question that people are seeing drones,” U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Sunday. “But I want to assure the American public that we are on it. We are working in close coordination with state and local authorities.”

Some of the drones reported above parts of New York and New Jersey have turned out to be “manned aircraft that are commonly mistaken for drones,” Mayorkas said. “We know of no foreign involvement with respect to the sightings in the Northeast. And we are vigilant in investigating this matter.”

New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy posted on X Sunday night that he had been out looking for drones with state police in West Trenton, New Jersey. “The public deserves clear answers — we will keep pushing the federal government for more information and resources,” he said, adding that the FBI had briefed him about the sightings in Colts Neck, New Jersey.

Federal aviation authorities have required certain drones to broadcast their remote identification since last year, including the location of their operators. It’s not clear whether that information has been used to determine who is behind the drones plaguing locations over New York and New Jersey. Mayorkas’ office didn’t respond to questions about whether they’ve been able to identify drones using this capability.

Dozens of mysterious nighttime flights started last month over parts of New Jersey, raising concerns among residents and officials. Part of the worry stems from the flying objects initially being spotted near the Picatinny Arsenal, a U.S. military research and manufacturing facility, and over President-elect Donald Trump’s golf course in Bedminster.

“It didn’t concern me at first,” said Trisha Bushey, of Clinton Township, New Jersey, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of the Picatinny Arsenal. “I just didn’t think anything of it until it started becoming like every night, the same time, same places.”

Bushey said she thought it was military drills at first, but then officials said the military wasn’t involved.

“And then once they came out and said that they’re not and they don’t know what they are and they’re not foreign, but they’re not ours and they don’t pose a threat, that’s when it becomes concerning,” she told The Associated Press.

Drones are now being reported all along the northeastern U.S.

Some U.S. political leaders, including Trump, have called for much stronger action against the drones, including shooting them down.

Certain agencies within the Department of Homeland Security have the power to “incapacitate” drones, Mayorkas said Sunday. “But we need those authorities expanded,” he said.

Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut. Associated Press writers John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, Mike Catalini in Trenton, New Jersey, and Joseph B. Frederick in New York City contributed to this report.