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Brian Groo, 24, of Horsham, was charged after a video of the infant being raped was found online on Wednesday, Oct. 30, the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office said.
Authorities initially learned of the video after receiving a cybertip from the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children on the same date, according to the district attorney. The video had been shared via an online messaging app called Kik.
The cybertip indicated that the video appeared to be newly produced or homemade content, meaning the child could be suffering from ongoing sexual assaults, the district attorney stated in the news release.
Investigators traced the username "Zenshadowsoul" that shared the videos to other online accounts, then traced the IP address to Groo's residence on Maple Avenue in Horsham Township, according to the district attorney.
County detectives found a hidden cellphone with the Kik app installed and with an email address associated with the video from the cybertip, the district attorney's news release states. Investigators learned that the infant boy in the video was someone Groo had access to.
A second child pornography video was found on Groo's hidden cellphone involving a toddler who was raped by a Kik user Groo had sent his video to, according to the affidavit.
Groo was charged with:
- Rape of a Child.
- Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse with Child.
- Unlawful Contact with Minor - Sexual Offense.
- Contact with Minor - Sexual Abuse.
- Film on Computer Sex Act - Child.
- Disseminate Film of Child Sex Acts.
- Child Pornography (two counts).
- Endangering Welfare of Children.
- Corruption of Minors.
- Criminal Use of Communication Facility.
- Possession of Instrument of Crime with Intent.
He is being held in the Montgomery County Prison on $2,000,077 cash bail, according to court documents. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 14.
Groo pleaded guilty to Disseminate Film of Child Sex Acts on Thursday, April 29, 2021, court records state. He was sentenced to up to 23 months in prison and five years on probation.
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