Expand / Collapse search
☰

6 men arrested during undercover child sex sting in Delaware County, DA says

By FOX 29 Staff
Published  December 14, 2022 2:45pm EST
News
FOX 29 Philadelphia
article

Suspects arrested in child sex crime sting in Delaware County.

DELAWARE COUNY - A four-day undercover sting led to the arrest of six men who officials say attempted to engage in unlawful sexual conduct with minors in Delaware County.

The men, ranging in age from 24 to 56, have been charged with multiple counts of child sex-related crimes.

Undercover agents posed as minors online during the joint sting operation, which ran from December 8 to 11, and ended with the arrest of these six suspects:

  • Joseph P. Fahy, 48, of Media, is accused of traveling to Essington, Delaware County, to meet up with a person he believed to be a 14-year-old boy for sex. He was arrested at the meetup site on December 8.
  • Laurence D. Tom, 47, of Philadelphia, is accused of meeting up with an undercover agent posing as a 14-year-old girl after making several sexual requests. He was arrested at the meetup location in Tinicum Township on December 10.
  • Stephen L. Maghandy-Taghap, 37, of Philadelphia, is accused of agreeing to pay a person he believed to be a 14-year-old $100 for sex. He was taken into custody on December 8 at the meetup site in Tinicum Township.
  • Tyler A. Wilder, 30, of Glenmoore, is accused of exchanging a series of explicit sexual messages with the undercover agent posing as a 14-year-old boy despite expressing concern that he might get "in trouble." He was taken into custody on December 10 at the site of a proposed meetup in Tinicum Township.
  • Daniel J. Thurman-Miller, 24, of Colorado Spring, Colorado, is accused of asking a person he believed to be 14-year-old girl to meet up for oral sex. A meetup was arranged for December 9, in Tinicum Township, at which time he was taken into custody.
  • Andrew Chang, 56, of Upper Darby, is accused of beginning a sexual conversation with an agent posing as a 12-year-old girl, requesting explicit pictures and attempting to meet up for sexual acts. He was taken into custody on December 10 in Tinicum Township.

All six suspects have been charged with various offenses, including attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child, unlawful contact with a minor, attempted corruption of minors and criminal use of a communication facility. 

Bail has been set at $250,000 for each suspect ahead of a preliminary hearing on December 19.