ATHENS Pa. (WETM) — An Athens man has been charged with multiple child sexual abuse and child pornography charges by Pennsylvania State Police.

Benjamin Wheeler, 27, was arrested on August 6, 2022, after Pennsylvania State Police said that they received a call from a person stating that they had found explicit photos of a child on Wheeler’s phone.

Police performed a search warrant to seize the cell phone belonging to Wheeler, and he was asked to come into PSP Towada to speak with criminal investigators, which he did so voluntarily.

According to Police, when asked about the illicit images on his phone he stated that he had taken them personally. Police said that Wheeler admitted to taking photos as recently as the morning of his arrest.

He also admitted to police that he had engaged in sexual acts with a child under 13 years of age.

According to the criminal complaint, Wheeler said that he was in possession of pictures received from an app called Telegram and that when asked if he had sent images out, he said “unfortunately I have”. Police also stated that Wheeler would swap images with other people online.

He was charged with Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse with a Child, Sexual Assault, Indecent Assault with a Person less than 13 years of age, two counts of Dissemination of Photo/Film of child sex acts, and two counts of Child Pornography.

He currently has a preliminary hearing scheduled in Sayre for August 16, 2022