CLEARFIELD – A Hyde man has been arrested for the alleged sexual abuse of a young boy whom he also recorded and disseminated explicit videos of to a social media user in the United Kingdom.
Shain Thomas Andrew McCreadie, 27, has been charged by Clearfield Regional police with felony photograph/film/depict on computer sex act – knowingly or permitting child; photograph/film/depict on computer sex act – knowingly depicts on computer, photo, etc.; dissemination photo/film of child sex acts; child pornography; corruption of minors; unlawful contact with a minor; criminal use of communication facility; contact/communication with minor-sexual abuse; sexual exploitation of children and unlawful contact with minor-sexual exploitation, as well as four misdemeanors and a summary.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, on June 30, 2023, local police were contacted by U.S. Homeland Security Investigations—a federal law enforcement agency within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security—concerning an active sex abuse investigation with a child victim within their jurisdiction.
Homeland Security Investigations had received information from authorities in the United Kingdom, alleging McCreadie had sexually abused the victim, videotaped it and disseminated it electronically to a recipient in West Yorkshire, England on two separate occasions between August 2020 and July 2022.
At the time, McCreadie resided in Hyde and communicated with the male subject in England via the social media application Skype Messenger.
His account was reportedly created Aug. 13, 2020 and contained “extensive correspondence of explicit nature” between McCreadie and the male who had been posing as a female.
Two videos allegedly depicted McCreadie performing sex acts around the victim.
“There was also extensive communication between McCreadie and the male subject about sexually abusing children. [McCreadie] indicated that he has a sexual interest in [the victim],” the affidavit states.
On July 1, 2023, local police executed a search warrant at McCreadie’s residence and seized numerous electronic items he could have used for the production and dissemination of child pornography.
Some items were turned over to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and transported to its Pittsburgh Field Office for storage and analysis.
On July 26, 2023, local police obtained a second search warrant so the digital contents of the seized devices could be analyzed for evidence of criminal activity.
The devices were returned to local police Oct. 26, 2023 with Homeland Security’s investigative findings, a flash drive containing the two videos and a transcript of two years worth of explicit text conversations between McCreadie and the male subject.
In an interview Oct. 31, 2023, McCreadie reportedly admitted to use of various social media applications such as Facebook, Skype, SnapChat, Instagram and TikTok but then tried to say he hadn’t used Skype in years.
He told police that he thought the individual he was conversing with was female and wasn’t sure where they were from.
He said he was asked to perform sex acts on the victim and videotape it, which he refused to do at first.
At the time, McCreadie said he worked for a road construction flagging company and most of the conversations occurred while he was roadside at job sites.
When confronted about an explicit shower video, he said he didn’t think it was “that bad,” and was “pretty sure” that the inappropriate contact was “accidental.”
When asked if he thought his actions were wrong, McCreadie said it looks all wrong and it wasn’t looking “too good” for him as local police had been to his home.
Then, he allegedly admitted that he was the male abusing the victim in the two videos that he recorded and disseminated through Skype to the male in England.
When local police asked McCreadie what he thought would happen to him, he responded, “I’m possibly going to end up in jail.”
McCreadie is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing Wednesday, June 12. Bail is set at $25,000 monetary, which he’s posted.