Keith Peschen, the president of the Levittown Lions Football Club in Pennsylvania, was arrested on charges that he raped a cheerleader over the span of two years.
A former Pennsylvania youth football coach has been accused of repeatedly raping a young cheerleader over the course of two years, when the girl was between the ages of 11 and 13.
Falls Township police have thrown Keith Peschen, president of the Levittown Lions Youth Football Club, behind bars after the survivor finally came forward with her story.
She kept silent about the abuse until she was 17 years old because she feared for her life, the Bucks County Courier Times reports.
According to police, the teenager’s mother and Peschen’s wife were family friends. At that time, the girl was a cheerleader for the Levittown Lions, while Peschen served as a football coach.
Peschen was in his early 30s when he started raping a young girl who was just 11 years old.
The abuse first started after Peschen hired her to babysit his two children.
The girl told police that she never wanted to have sex with the older man, but was scared and young and unsure about how to react to the assault.
But Peschen didn’t stop there.
He continued to call and text the young girl, asking if she needed rides to and from her sports activities. And since he was her parents’ friend, the girl would often accept.
Peschen is married with two children of his own.
According to prosecutors, Peschen used these rides as opportunities to live out his sexual fantasies. He would take the young girl to parking lots to have sex.
The attacks reportedly ended when the girl was 13 years old.
On July 12, her mom invited Falls Township police to their home to hear the daughter’s accusations.
The cops immediately launched an investigation.
The former youth football coach remained stone-faced as he entered jail, refusing to answer a reporter’s questions.
On Wednesday, Bucks County officials recorded a phone call during which the girl confronted Peschen about the attacks. According to court documents, he confessed that he had raped her and apologized for his behavior. Another call between the victim and her abuser was recorded on Friday.
The 37-year-old was taken into custody on Friday. His charges include raping a child and aggravated assault.
The abuser remained stone-faced as he was led into the county jail, ignoring a reporter’s questions.
His bond is set for $1 million.
Bucks County authorities are now concerned that other young children in the community might have been targeted by Peschen. The Levittown Lions accept cheerleaders between the ages of 5 and 12.
“We certainly would like to call the attention of people in the community, whose children may have been exposed to this fellow,” district attorney David Heckler told NBC Philadelphia.
Read more: Daily News
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