Schuylkill County Man Sentenced to State Prison in Child Porn Case

A Schuylkill County man was sentenced earlier this week to 2-4 years in state prison for possession and dissemination of child pornography.

Gary Hysock Jr., 37, of Cumbola, entered a guilty plea in Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas on Monday afternoon. He was immediately sentenced by Judge James Goodman.

Hysock was sentenced to 2-4 years on a single count of possession of child pornography and 12-24 months concurrently on a charge of dissemination of photos or film depicting child sex acts. He was also sentenced to 2 years of probation for criminal use of a communication device.

An investigation began in May after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received notifications from the apps MeetMe and KIK about users involved in child exploitation. The investigation traced an IP address to Hysock Jr. in Cumbola.

Authorities found at least 10 images depicting sexual acts involving young children on a Motorola device belonging to Hysock Jr., with one image believed to show a child as young as 4 to 6 years old.

Initially, Hysock Jr. denied knowledge of the KIK app and claimed he only used the internet for games. However, a forensic review of his device contradicted his statements.

In a subsequent interview, Hysock Jr. admitted to having a KIK account where he received and shared illicit images in chat groups, stating he did so to obtain more files.

He also admitted that his initial curiosity about child pornography evolved into sexual arousal. He claimed the files were “merely fantasy” and that he never sexually abused children.

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