Silverton man faces charges of videotaped sex with son

Silverton man faces charges of videotaped sex with son

05:45 PM PST on Thursday, December 2, 2004
By ABE ESTIMADA, kgw.com Staff

SALEM – The Marion County District Attorney's Office alleges that a Silverton man videotaped himself having sex with his 9-year-old adopted son from Romania.

Marion County Sheriff's Office

William Delos Peckenpaugh.

William Peckenpaugh, 37, faces six counts of sodomy in the first degree, two counts of sex abuse in the first degree, and one count of using a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct.

He is being in held in Marion County Jail in Salem without bail.

The boy is in a foster home, but it is unknown if he is staying with relatives or a licensed care provider, said Courtland Geyer, spokesman for the Marion County District Attorney’s Office on Thursday.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office began its investigation when a couple bought a digital video recorder from Fry’s Electronics in Wilsonville. They found a video inside showing sex between a man and a boy, Geyer said.

“The investigation led authorities to believe it was Mr. Peckenpaugh and the nine-year-old, his adopted son (on the videotape),” Geyer said.

The video recorder was taken back to Fry’s, where employees called authorities on Nov. 15. Investigators traced the video recorder to a Peckenpaugh family member, who originally returned it to Fry’s. Fry’s then sold the video recorder to the unwitting couple.

Peckenpaugh was arrested on Nov 17. He was arraigned on the grand jury charges on Nov. 30.

Marion County investigators have been mum about much of the details of the case. They believe the abuse has been occurring for about four years, but they would not say if the boy was brought here to the United States specifically for sex.

Nor would Geyer say what evidence was seized from Peckenpaugh’s home, whether more arrests are pending, or if any other sexually explicit tapes were produced or sold. Geyer emphasized the investigation is continuing.

“Authorities are looking into all relevant angles,” he said.

If convicted, Peckenpaugh will get plenty of prison time. The sex abuse-related crimes are Measure 11 offenses that require strict mandatory sentences under Oregon law. Measure 11 was passed by voters in 1994.

A conviction on sodomy in the first degree could land Peckenpaugh in prison for 100 months, sex abuse for 75 months, and using a child in a sexually explicit display for 70 months.

Peckenpaugh is scheduled to appear in Marion County court again on Dec. 8, when he is expected to enter a plea to the charges.