57-year-old also accused of burglary and solicitation
A 57-year-old man is charged with sexually assaulting a teen relative’s 15-year-old best friend about 20 times between October and December.
The charges were brought by the West Virginia State Police.
Gerald Thomas McCarthy, of Morgantown, is charged with 20 counts of third-degree sexual assault, soliciting a minor via computer, traveling to engage the minor in prohibited sexual activity, and burglary.
On Dec. 5, the victim’s mother called 911 and asked to speak with the police about her daughter being involved in illegal sexual activity, according to a criminal complaint.
The victim’s mother said she discovered her daughter was having sex with McCarthy, the complaint said. The victim and McCarthy’s relative stayed the night at each other’s houses, making McCarthy a guardian at the time of the crimes.
In an interview at the Monongalia County Child Advocacy Center, the victim said she and McCarthy started speaking in September after she told a friend she thought he was “hot,” according to the complaint. Her friend told McCarthy as a joke, and he messaged the victim on Facebook.
During the conversations, McCarthy “asked the victim if she was a virgin and if she was comfortable having sex,” the complaint said. A plan was made for the two to have sex the next time the victim was at his residence.
The victim said she thinks they first had sex in October, in McCarthy’s bed, while his wife slept on the couch downstairs. The complaint also details other sexual encounters the victim disclosed in the CAC interview.
On the night of Dec. 4, McCarthy sneaked into the victim’s home and hid in her closet while the family was shopping, according to the complaint. When the victim got home, they had sex with the music turned up and he left in the morning.
McCarthy did not have permission to be in the victim’s home, the complaint said.
The evidence provided was corroborated by the mother’s statements and the physical evidence as seen by the state police, according to the complaint.
McCarthy was arraigned Monday by Magistrate Tim Pocius who set bond at $500,000. He is being held in North Central Regional Jail.
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