DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — A 49-year-old piano teacher in the Doylestown area is accused of sexually abusing at least four young children over the course of several years. Authorities are concerned there are other victims who haven’t come forward.
Bucks County District Attorney Jen Schorn said 49-year-old Timothy Shay, of Plumstead Township, groomed children while he was teaching private piano lessons, gradually advancing to sexual assault.
“All of the boys in this case were incredibly young — the youngest being just 5 years old — when the sexual abuse occurred,” she said. “What is equally as concerning is the fact that the abuse for all four victims occurred on multiple occasions.”
Schorn said the four cases Shay is currently charged with are from the late 1990s and early 2000s, but she said there is a clear pattern in the accusations.
“The two victims from Middletown don’t know the two victims from Newtown Township, yet their account of their victimization is so eerily similar, and that just speaks volumes as to what occurred in the pattern,” she said.
“This individual was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and using his talents as a piano instructor to access children for his deviant gratification.”
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Middletown Township Police Chief Joseph Bartorilla asks anyone who had contact with Shay to reach out to the police department. “Given the pattern of abuse we’ve uncovered, we strongly believe there may be other victims,” he said.
Schorn said it’s not uncommon for children to never report abuse until late in adulthood. “That’s why the statute of limitations in Pennsylvania was expanded to someone’s 50th birthday,” she added.
Anyone with information should contact Middletown Township Detective John Beck at 215-750-3872.
Schorn said Shay was teaching piano lessons as recently as a week ago, using a Facebook page to find private lessons and also teaching at D-Town Guitars and Skateboards on Easton Road. She noted D-Town has been extremely cooperative and “is not at fault.”