Ohio man charged with raping 8-month-old baby after police unearth evidence in child porn investigation
MORGAN COUNTY, OHIO: An Ohio man who was under investigation for possessing child abuse images has been arrested and charged with the 'horrific' rape of an infant.
An investigation led by the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office culminated in the arrest of Zachariah Wicker, 21, of Perry County in connection to child sexual abuse and child pornography involving an eight-month-old child, according to the Morgan County Herald.
Morgan County Sheriff Douglas J McGrath revealed his office had conducted a weekend-long investigation which turned up evidence that implicated Wicker and helped them obtain a search warrant of his residence.
On Sunday, April 19, the Perry County Sheriff’s Office, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) joined the MCSO in executing the warrant at the 21-year-old's residence located in the Rose Farm area of York Township.
"Evidence was collected during the investigation, and the search warrant resulted in the arrest," McGrath said.
Wicker has been charged with statutory rape and is currently incarcerated at the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail on a $1 million bond. He made his first appearance in court on Monday and doesn't appear to have a previous criminal history.
If convicted, he could face up to 11 years in prison, as well as a $20,000 fine.
The sheriff expressed his gratitude to all those who had been involved in the case and had helped put a child predator behind bars.
"I would like to extend kudos to everyone involved in getting this case to a quick resolution," he said. "This includes Prosecutor Mark Howdyshell, Morgan County Children’s Services, and the Perry County Sheriff’s Office."
"I especially want to commend all of my deputies involved in this case," he continued. "My deputies put forth a lot of time and effort to ensure the victim is now safe. It deeply disturbs me to have such horrific crimes being committed in our community, but I am so glad we have a dedicated, caring team here at the Sheriff’s Office that was able to identify this crime, quickly act upon it and put an abrupt halt to it."
Wicker's arrest came just a day after it was reported that John Harrison, who was in jail for raping a girl and preying on children as young as four, had died in prison.
Harrison, of Ayrshire, Scotland, had been serving an eight-year jail term in HMP Barlinnie after he was convicted for the rape of a girl, and for preying on a total of seven girls and boys, who were as young as four.
He had attacked the victims from the 1960s through to the 1990s at different locations in Greenock, Inverclyde, and had been chastised by presiding Judge Andrew Cubie after he denied responsibility.
"You express no acceptance for the offending. You maintain there was some kind of conspiracy or that they were motivated by some form of financial claim," Cubie told Harrison, before adding that he was guilty of “calculated and predatory sexual abuse."