MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — A Montgomery County man has been charged with possession of child sexual abuse material after authorities say he chatted with a federal agent on an encrypted app.
A criminal complaint says the investigation into 38-year-old Matthew Pappalardo of Audubon began when federal authorities started looking into an encrypted chat app called Teleguard, with a group called “Groom Central.”
Authorities say Pappalardo used the names “TheMarquisdeSade” and “expoldingcandles” and started chatting with an undercover homeland security special agent, in which they allege he told the agent his ideal age range for videos was 8-to-12 years old, adding they were hard to find.
When Pappalardo returned from a cruise, federal authorities searched his phone and found “numerous” videos classified as child sexual abuse materials, showing a 13-to-14-year-old.
They say when they searched his home on Casselberry Drive, they found more than 200 graphic videos and images with children as young as 6-to-8 years old.
Pappalardo is charged with 48 counts of possessing child sexual abuse material, along with criminal use of a communication facility.
He’s free on $75,000 bail with a preliminary hearing scheduled for Sept. 10.