Man Filmed Himself Sexually Assaulting 7-Year-Old Boy: Delco DA

A Darby man is accused of sexually assaulting and recording the abuse a 7-year-old boy on several occasions recently, according to the Delaware County District Attorney's Office.

Today District Attorney Katayoun M. Copeland announced Archie Joseph Kissling, 24, of Darby Township, was arrested and charged after allegedly sexually assaulting a 7-year-old boy and videotaping the acts.

Kissling has been hit with a litany of charges in connection with the alleged sexaul assaults.

He faces multiple counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child, aggravated indecent assault of a child, both felonies of the first degree; photographing/filming child sex act, child pornography, felonies of the second degree; criminal use of a communication facility, indecent assault of a person less than 13 years old, corruption of minors, and endangering the welfare of children, which are all third-degree felonies.

Kissling was arrested Nov. 29 and was remanded to the George W. Hill Correctional Facility after failing to post $1 million bail, according to court documents. He is slated for a preliminary hearing on Dec. 12, court records show.

His arrest is the result of an investigation conducted by Detective Sergeant Kenneth Bellis of the District Attorney’s Criminal Investigation Division (CID) and Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force with assistance from Darby Township Police and the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and the Central Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

On Nov. 24, Darby Township Police Officer Craig White contacted Bellis about information he received from two concerned citizens who said they found videos and images of child sexual abuse in Kissling's Google Photos account, according to the DA's office.

Bellis launched an investigation immediately and contacted Detective Crystal Trentmann from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office in Florida, who is also a member of the Central Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Through Trentmann's efforts, Bellis got the pornographic videos and images in Kissling's Google account, which revealed numerous videos and images of Kissling sexually abusing a minor male child, the DA's office said.

At about 1 p.m. on Nov. 24, police saw Kissling leaving his residence in Darby Township through the back door then get in a vehicle, according to the DA's office.

Police stopped the vehicle and as a CID Detective approached the passenger side of the vehicle, he saw Kissling drop a Samsung cellphone to the floor, which authorities seized as well as an Alcatel cellphone, the DA's office said.

Bellis reviewed the images and videos in Kissling's Google account, which showed five different incidents occurring in August and October this year, according to the DA's office.

The videos allegedly show Kissling sexually abusing a 7-year-old victim on five separate incidents. In addition to the videos found, Kissling's Google account contained numerous images of child pornography that appear to have been saved from the videos described above, the DA's office said.

"The actions of the defendant, Archie Kissling, are abhorrent, unimaginable and downright disgusting, as he not only repeatedly sexually abused an innocent child, but he further exploited this child by videotaping his appalling actions and created child pornography," Copeland said. "As he is currently incarcerated, he can cause no more harm to this child, or any other child for that matter. In partnership with our local police, detectives with CID and the ICAC Task Force, we will continue to actively work daily to locate and arrest individuals who seek to take advantage of innocent children for their own depraved, sexual gratification. I commend the Darby Township Police for their immediate response and CID Sergeant Kenneth Bellis and our Delaware County ICAC Task Force, as well as the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and Central Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force who provided tremendous assistance with this case to ensure the safety of this innocent victim and for the work they do every day to protect our children from dangerous predators."

Image via Delaware County District Attorney's Office