Cranberry Township man arraigned on child pornography charges
A Cranberry Township man was arraigned Tuesday, Nov. 12, on 109 felony counts of child pornography and related charges.
William R. Stanek Jr., 63, is free on unsecured $25,000 bail after his Tuesday hearing before District Judge Kevin J. Flaherty. Stanek was released without conditions, according to the court.
He is charged with possession of more than 1,500 image and video files depicting child pornography and with uploading files onto an internet site on seven occasions.
Stanek was charged by state police after tipsters reported 115 files of suspected child sexual exploitation were uploaded to the internet between March 21, 2023, and Sept. 4, 2023, from a Verizon cellphone number belonging to the defendant, according to the complaint.
In an affidavit, the files were described as primarily videos of prepubescent children, including infants and toddlers engaged in sexually explicit acts, either alone or with an adult.
According to the affidavit, a search warrant of Stanek’s residence was served Aug. 1.
During that search, Stanek admitted to viewing and possessing child pornography for about 20 years in an interview with state police, the affidavit said. He said he acquired the child pornography through internet sites, including bulletin boards, groups and social media platforms including Facebook and WhatsApp, according to the affidavit.
More than 2,000 additional digital files depicting “child exploitative material,” as well as child-sized dolls, were among the items seized during the search, according to the affidavit. Additional items from Stanek’s residence have not been fully analyzed and are not reflected in the 109 criminal charges.
Charges include seven counts of disseminating a photo or film of a child engaged in a sex act, 100 counts of possession of child pornography, and two counts of criminal use of a communication facility.
Stanek’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 6.