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Child Sexual Abuse Material

1068: Percy Wilbur Rock, Jr.

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Percy Wilbur Rock, Jr.

Percy Wilbur Rock, Jr. was a candidate in the Republican primary for Greencastle-Antrim School Board in Pennsylvania. He was arrested after the ballots had been printed and software coded so he remained on the ballot. He got 763 votes.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provided police with an IP address that had been observed uploading Child Sexual Abuse Material. Police tracked it to Rock who told the police he has been viewing CSAM for ten years or more.

The probable cause affidavit detailed eleven images of CSAM involving girls from apparent ages one to twelve. The police said those images were just a sample of what was collected from his laptop.

He was charged with eleven counts of possessing CSAM and one count for criminal use of a communication facility.

In a plea bargain, he pled guilty to one CSAM possession charge and was sentenced to four years on June 7, 2023.

Text of all three screenshots School board candidate faces 11 child porn charges - Record Herald, The (Waynesboro, PA) - April 27, 2023 - page A1 April 27, 2023 | Record Herald, The (Waynesboro, PA) | Shawn Hardy; The Echo Pilot | Page A1 A Greencastle-Antrim School Board candidate arrested Wednesday, April 19, for allegedly looking at child pornography online inquired later in the day about having his name removed from the ballot, but it is too late. Percy Wilbur Rock Jr., 79, of East Weaver Road, Greencastle, is facing 11 charges of child pornography and one charge of criminal use of a communication facility. Questioned at his home the morning of his arrest, Rock admitted to looking at child pornography for more than 10 years, according to charging documents filed by Pennsylvania State Police. Why was Rock arrested? In October 2022, Microsoft filed a CyberTip concerning the uploading of apparent child pornography with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to the affidavit of probable cause filed in Magisterial District Judge Duane Cunningham's office in Greencastle. In January, the Pennsylvania State Police Computer Crime Unit subpoenaed information on an IP address that was linked to Rock's home. The affidavit detailed 11 images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) involving girls ranging in estimated age from 1 to 12. "These images are only a sampling of what was found on the laptop," a trooper with the Troop I computer crime unit wrote. Officers with the computer crime unit and the Chambersburg state police barrack went to Rock's home around 8:30 a.m. April 19. "Upon knocking and announcing our presence we observed an individual in the window of the residence, though there was no answer at the door. After making entry into the residence, we located Percy Rock Jr. standing behind the doorway," the affidavit said. Rock was told there was a search warrant and he agreed to speak with the computer crimes officer. Rock confirmed he had seen child abuse material online, was a "casual browser of CSAM" and had viewed CSAM as recently as the day before. Rock was arrested, arraigned on the charges before Cunningham and released on $100,000 unsecured bond. His preliminary hearing is set for May 5. Attempts to reach Rock concerning the charges and his candidacy were unsuccessful. Why will his name still be on the ballot? On the afternoon of April 19, Rock called the Franklin County commissioners office and was told it is too late to have his name taken off the ballot. All ballots have already been printed, mail-in and absentee ballots were sent out last week and software has been coded, according to Jean Byers, Franklin County deputy chief clerk. There are five seats available on the G-A School Board this year, and Rock is one of six candidates seeking the Republican nomination in the May 16 primary election. The others are current board members H. Carter Davidson and Christopher Tyler Bonillas, along with Jacob Burns, Alana Michael and Mark Scriever II. There are no Democratic candidates. Rock remains a candidate on the ballot, and if he is one the top five vote-getters, he has until Aug. 8 to ask that his nomination be withdrawn, Byers said. Rock, who speaks often during the public comment period at school board meetings, ran for a seat two years ago and came in seventh in a 10-candidate Republican field in the primary. "The board lacks diversity and transparency. I am a senior citizen and a fiscal conservative. I have to be because I live on a fixed income I will bring a conservative perspective to the board," Rock responded in candidate survey prior to the 2021 primary. Shawn Hardy is a reporter with Gannett's Franklin County newspapers in south-central Pennsylvania — the Echo Pilot in Greencastle, The Record Herald in Waynesboro and the Public Opinion in Chambersburg. She has more than 35 years of journalism experience. Reach her at shardy@gannett.com Copyright 2023 The Record Herald. All Rights Reserved.
Record Herald, The (Waynesboro, PA)
April 27, 2023

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