Port Carbon councilman Chuck Joy along with two Tamaqua men were arraigned on numerous child sex charges Thursday afternoon.
Joy is one of three men arrested Thursday by Tamaqua police in connection with one investigation. A fourth man, Dale Schimpf, was arrested in February at Nativity BVM High School in Pottsville. Tamaqua police allege all four arrests are connected.
All four men allegedly met a 13-year-old boy from Tamaqua on the mobile gay dating app, Grindr.
However, according to court records, Joy and two others, Brad Murphy and Matthew Delgado, both of Tamaqua, allegedly met with the victim on September 1, 2018. The incident that landed Schimpf in jail happened on February 21 of this year.
The three men arrested Thursday couldn’t post their bail and were placed in Schuylkill County Prison.
Port Carbon Councilman Among Those Arrested Thursday
Here’s a rundown of the charges against the three arrested on Thursday.
Defendant: Charles R. Joy Jr., Port Carbon
- Statutory Sexual Assault: 11 Years Older (Felony-1)
- IDSI Person Less Than 16 Yrs Age (F1)
- Ind Assault Person Less 16 Yrs Age (Misdemeanor-2)
- Indecent Exposure (M1)
- Corruption of Minors (M1)
Defendant: Matthew Delgado, Tamaqua
- Two counts, Statutory Sexual Assault: 11 Years Older (F1)
- Two counts, IDSI Person Less Than 16 Yrs Age (F1)
- One count, Corruption Of Minors – Defendant Age 18 or Above (F3)
- Two counts, Indecent Exposure (M1)
- Two counts, Indecent Assault Person Less than 13 Years of Age (M1)
Defendant: Brad D. Murphy, Tamaqua
- Statutory Sexual Assault: 11 Years Older (F1)
- IDSI Person Less Than 16 Yrs Age (F1)
- Indecent Exposure 09/01/2018 (M1)
- Corruption of Minors (M1)
- Ind Asslt Person Less 16 Yrs Age (M2)
Joy and Delgado were arraigned on $50,000 cash bail before District Judge Stephen Bayer in Tamaqua. Their preliminary hearings are scheduled for April 16 at noon.
Murphy’s preliminary hearing was not set. He was also unable to post $50,000 bail. He has retained former Schuylkill County District Attorney Christine Holman as his attorney.
The Schimpf Arrest
The three men arrested Thursday seem to have all targeted the same 13-year-old Tamaqua boy using the Grindr app. Details behind Thursday’s arrest were not available to the Canary.
In Schimpf’s case, the Nativity, and former North Schuylkill and Cardinal Brennan, music teacher is alleged to have met the victim in this case on the Grindr app. At the time of his arrest, Schimpf said he thought the 13-year-old was 30. Before engaging in sex with the victim, Schimpf picked him up in his car, took him to dinner, and then back to his Frackville home.
Schimpf’s preliminary hearing scheduled for March 12 was continued. He’ll appear before Bayer on April 23 at 1 p.m. He’s been in Schuylkill County Prison since Feb. 25.
ALSO READ: WELL KNOWN MUSIC TEACHER ARRESTED ON CHILD SEX CHARGES
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