Lower Saucon Township resident Ryan Michael McCarthy, 34, is facing child pornography possession and other charges, according to police and court records. (Credit: Lower Saucon Township Police Department/Crimewatch)
A Lower Saucon Township man is facing possession of child pornography and other charges after police say they discovered hundreds of photos allegedly depicting child pornography on an electronic device.
In a post on the department’s Crimewatch site Thursday, police said 34-year-old Ryan Michael McCarthy was arrested after they received information from the Northern York County Regional Police Department in June about “suspected child pornography being uploaded to a phone.” Police said a report was then generated with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
According to police, the phone number the department received was traced to McCarthy and a search warrant was then served at his home in July. Two cell phones and a laptop computer were seized during a search of the residence and sent to the Pennsylvania State Police Computer Crime Unit for analysis, police said.
In August, police said an analysis revealed that “one of the phones contained a total of 853 picture files depicting apparent child pornography.”
McCarthy was arrested on Aug. 23 and charged with Felony 2 Possession of Child Pornography, Felony 3 Criminal Use of a Communication Facility and Misdemeanor 2 Tampering with/Fabricating Evidence, according to township police and Northampton County court records.
Following a preliminary arraignment Aug. 23 before District Judge Alan Mege, McCarthy was committed to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $25,000 straight bail, according to records.
McCarthy was still incarcerated as of Thursday, according to the docket filed in his case.
A preliminary hearing before Mege is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 11:30 a.m. in Northampton County District Court 03-2-04 in Lower Saucon Township.
The docket did not list an attorney for McCarthy.
Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from the Lower Saucon Township Police Department and Northampton County Court records.
