By Pattie Price
A 19-year-old Wayne resident turned himself in at District Court, Thursday, before a barrage of reporters and television cameras.
Neil Geckle is facing charges of multiple counts of dissemination of child pornography, possession of child pornography, criminal use of communication facility, selling obscene sexual materials, designing obscene sexual materials, and producing obscene performances. The charges stem from an investigation led by Delaware County CID Detective Lisa Carroll.
According to the affidavit, Detective Carroll received a report March 1 from Radnor Detective James Santoliquito that a high school student logged into her Facebook account and received a friend request and a private message from a “Matt Hemcher.” The message contained a link to a photo album. When the girl checked the link she found pictures from her account and also other females account that “Matt Hemcher” printed out, set on his desk, and took a picture of his penis on her picture.
The first victim said she recognized one of the other victims as one of her friends and notified her.
The second victim reported the same scenario. Neither of the victims know a “Matt Hemcher.”
Tredyffrin Township Police reported that a student at Conestoga High School reported the same incident. She also received a picture sent by “Matt Hemcher” who claimed to be a Connestoga High School student. The girl told police that she does not know anyone by that name. She also reported that some of her friends who attend Connestoga and Radnor high schools received similar pictures.
Setective Santoliquito printed “Matt Hemcher’s” Facebook profile and shared it with Detective Carroll. His profile stated that he attends Connestoga High School and works at Rita’s Water Ice. His account also contained photos of eight juveniles with superimposed obscene material. Hemcher’s profile was subsequently deleted before Detective Carroll was able to view it so she obtained a court order to get the information that led her to Geckle.
Detective Santoliquito received an e-mail from the fourth victim who reported the same scenario as the first three girls.
A search warrant was obtained for Geckle’s residence and served on April 9. Geckle was home at the time and admitted he created the Facebook page using the name Matt Hemcher. He said he used the computer in his grandmother’s bedroom and found the girls pictures in a Radnor High School network. He said he printed out the pictures, placed them on his desk, and took pictures of his penis and superimposed them onto the girls pictures.
Seized from the home were a Cricket cell phone, a Sony laptop, , an HP Probook, an e-machine, 47 DVD’s, a pink Apple i-pod, a Casio camera, and a folder containing the pictures.
Geckle was remanded to the George W. Hill Correctional Facility when he was unable to post $100,000 cash bail.