By . Daily Mail Reporter and Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 18:23 EST, 12 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:37 EST, 12 December 2013 . The fired chief of staff for Senator Lamar Alexander has made his first court appearance after being arrested for possession and distribution of child pornography. Ryan Loskarn was in a D.C. court on Thursday and answered softly, 'Yes, sir,' when he was asked whether or not he understood that he was charged with serious offenses. The prosecution argued that the 35-year-old Senate aide was a flight risk and the judge agreed to have him held until his preliminary hearing on Monday. Walking out: Ryan Loskam was arrested for possession of child porn at his Washington, DC home on Wednesday and made his first court appearance on Thursday . Loskarn faces up to 10 years on the possession charge, with no minimum, and five to 25 years on the distribution charge. According to a filing with the U.S. District Court on Thursday, police used a ram to enter Loskarn's home the day before, and noticed that he put something on the ledge outside a window. It turned out to a portable hard drive with videos depicting child pornography, according to the filing. Close to his boss: Loskarn has worked as the chief of staff to Republican Senator Lamar Alexander for the past two years (seen together in January) The filing states that in 2010, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Toronto Police Service were investigating a movie production company, a majority of whose films feature young nude boys, and found that Loskarn had made several purchases from the company in 2010 and 2011. Then in October of this year, the filing said, federal investigators identified Loskarn's residential IP address on a peer-to-peer network offering files 'with names that are consistent with child pornography broadcasting as a download candidate.' Loskarn was a rising star who had spent the past decade working his way up to increasingly important posts in the House and then the Senate. Republican Senator Lamar Alexander . from Tennessee said in a news release Wednesday he was 'stunned, . surprised and disappointed' by the allegations against his newly . departed staffer. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, another Tennessee Republican for whom Loskarn had . worked as communications director, said she was 'shocked, saddened and . stunned.' Several messages left for Loskarn were not returned. Video . taken by WJLA-TV showed Loskarn being led Wednesday from his southeast . D.C. home by U.S. Postal Inspector police, who put him in a black SUV. Loskarn . appeared to be in handcuffs, although a coat was draped over his arms. A . spokeswoman for the agency said she could not comment on the arrest. Alexander initially placed Loskarn on unpaid leave Wednesday morning, but before the end of the day, he had replaced Loskarn with David Cleary, the senator's legislative director. Under scrutiny: The home, in the Southeast neighborhood of Barney Circle, was swarmed by investigators and police had to use a barreling ram to get in . Alexander said in a statement that it will be up to the courts to judge Loskarn, but 'under these circumstances, he cannot continue to fulfill his duties as chief of staff.' Alexander is a former Tennessee governor who also served education secretary under former President George H.W. Bush. Loskarn had served as Alexander's chief of staff for the past two years. He was first elected to the Senate in 2002. He said his office was fully cooperating with the investigation. Loskarn had a wide range of media . contacts both in Tennessee and Washington dating back to his days as a . spokesman for Blackburn. Stunned and saddened: U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), pictured right, pledged his office's cooperation in the investigation into Ryan Loskarn (left) Loskarn . was well versed in Senate procedure and was considered a sharp . prognosticator of how debates and standoffs would play out. He was known to share colorful anecdotes and keen observations about body language and mood in the Senate. Other congressional staff and reporters were stunned by the news as word spread on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. According . to Loskarn's biography on his LinkedIn account and in previous . communications for Alexander's office, Loskarn graduated from Tulane . University in 2000 and went to work for Republican Congressman Wally . Herger of California as a legal assistant. He . later was the communications director for Blackburn and eventually . became staff director for the Senate Republican Conference.
Ryan Loskarn, 35, was arrested on Wednesday for possession and distribution of child porn .
Police had to use a battering ram to get into his D.C. home and found the Republican aide's portable hard drive on the window ledge .
Loskarn worked for Senator Lamar Alexander and the Tennessee Republican has since replaced him with another staffer .
By . Daily Mail Reporter and Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 18:23 EST, 12 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:37 EST, 12 December 2013 . The fired chief of staff for Senator Lamar Alexander has made his first court appearance after being arrested for possession and distribution of child pornography. Ryan Loskarn was in a D.C. court on Thursday and answered softly, 'Yes, sir,' when he was asked whether or not he understood that he was charged with serious offenses. The prosecution argued that the 35-year-old Senate aide was a flight risk and the judge agreed to have him held until his preliminary hearing on Monday. Walking out: Ryan Loskam was arrested for possession of child porn at his Washington, DC home on Wednesday and made his first court appearance on Thursday . Loskarn faces up to 10 years on the possession charge, with no minimum, and five to 25 years on the distribution charge. According to a filing with the U.S. District Court on Thursday, police used a ram to enter Loskarn's home the day before, and noticed that he put something on the ledge outside a window. It turned out to a portable hard drive with videos depicting child pornography, according to the filing. Close to his boss: Loskarn has worked as the chief of staff to Republican Senator Lamar Alexander for the past two years (seen together in January) The filing states that in 2010, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Toronto Police Service were investigating a movie production company, a majority of whose films feature young nude boys, and found that Loskarn had made several purchases from the company in 2010 and 2011. Then in October of this year, the filing said, federal investigators identified Loskarn's residential IP address on a peer-to-peer network offering files 'with names that are consistent with child pornography broadcasting as a download candidate.' Loskarn was a rising star who had spent the past decade working his way up to increasingly important posts in the House and then the Senate. Republican Senator Lamar Alexander . from Tennessee said in a news release Wednesday he was 'stunned, . surprised and disappointed' by the allegations against his newly . departed staffer. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, another Tennessee Republican for whom Loskarn had . worked as communications director, said she was 'shocked, saddened and . stunned.' Several messages left for Loskarn were not returned. Video . taken by WJLA-TV showed Loskarn being led Wednesday from his southeast . D.C. home by U.S. Postal Inspector police, who put him in a black SUV. Loskarn . appeared to be in handcuffs, although a coat was draped over his arms. A . spokeswoman for the agency said she could not comment on the arrest. Alexander initially placed Loskarn on unpaid leave Wednesday morning, but before the end of the day, he had replaced Loskarn with David Cleary, the senator's legislative director. Under scrutiny: The home, in the Southeast neighborhood of Barney Circle, was swarmed by investigators and police had to use a barreling ram to get in . Alexander said in a statement that it will be up to the courts to judge Loskarn, but 'under these circumstances, he cannot continue to fulfill his duties as chief of staff.' Alexander is a former Tennessee governor who also served education secretary under former President George H.W. Bush. Loskarn had served as Alexander's chief of staff for the past two years. He was first elected to the Senate in 2002. He said his office was fully cooperating with the investigation. Loskarn had a wide range of media . contacts both in Tennessee and Washington dating back to his days as a . spokesman for Blackburn. Stunned and saddened: U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), pictured right, pledged his office's cooperation in the investigation into Ryan Loskarn (left) Loskarn . was well versed in Senate procedure and was considered a sharp . prognosticator of how debates and standoffs would play out. He was known to share colorful anecdotes and keen observations about body language and mood in the Senate. Other congressional staff and reporters were stunned by the news as word spread on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. According . to Loskarn's biography on his LinkedIn account and in previous . communications for Alexander's office, Loskarn graduated from Tulane . University in 2000 and went to work for Republican Congressman Wally . Herger of California as a legal assistant. He . later was the communications director for Blackburn and eventually . became staff director for the Senate Republican Conference.
fired chief of staff for Senator Lamar Alexander arrested for possession and distribution of child pornography. Ryan Loskarn was in a D.C. court on home on Wednesday and made his first court he put something on the ledge outside a window. It turned out to a portable hard drive with another Tennessee Republican for whom Loskarn had use a barreling ram to get in . Alexander said in