Horsham man charged with distributing child porn

HORSHAM >> A Horsham man is accused of possessing and distributing child pornography while using his home computer equipment and internet file-sharing software.

Xing Jian Ge, 23, of the 400 block of Barbin Street, was arraigned before District Court Judge Harry Nesbitt on charges of possessing child pornography, distribution of child pornography and criminal use of a communication facility in connection with alleged incidents that occurred between September 2020 and January 2021.

Nesbitt set bail at $100,000, which Ge posted and he will remain free while awaiting his preliminary hearing on the charges on April 15. As conditions of bail Ge is to have no nefarious internet usage and no contact with minors.

Ge’s arrest was announced on Tuesday by Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele, Abington Township Police Chief Patrick Molloy and Horsham Township Police Chief William Daly.

In September 2020, detectives were conducting an online investigation to identify individuals possessing and sharing child pornography using a peer-to-peer file-sharing network and located a computer, allegedly linked to Ge, sharing files associated with child pornography.

Detectives were able to make a direct connection to the computer sharing the files and from Sept. 1 to Sept. 21, downloaded 32 image files that contained photos of children engaged in sexual acts or in sexually explicit poses, according to the criminal complaint filed by Abington Detective Rick Beaghley, who has also been sworn as a special county detective to investigate internet crimes against children.

Subscriber information for the internet address was traced to the defendant’s residence in Horsham, according to the arrest affidavit.

On Jan. 22, 2021, detectives went to Ge’s residence with a search warrant and seized numerous electronic devices, including a computer tower and hard drive that were found to contain 1,049 video files and 264 image files that depicted children under the age of 18 engaged in sexual acts or poses, according to court documents.

Among the child pornography files, authorities found more than 100 videos depicting indecent contact with children, including children under the age of 5 being sexually assaulted, according to the criminal complaint.

When Ge was interviewed by detectives he allegedly admitted that he had installed the file-sharing software on his computer and admitted to downloading child pornography from the internet, according to the arrest affidavit. Ge allegedly stated his age of interest in kids was 13 to 15, “but admitted to having younger children in his collection,” according to court papers.