He had been an evidence custodian for Cumru police.
November 3, 2020
A former Cumru Township police lieutenant was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Easton to nine years in federal prison for transporting 257 child pornography images to his home computer.
Timothy Woll, a 29-year veteran township police officer, was also ordered by District Court Judge Edward G. Smith to pay $10,000 to a victim identified as "Vicky," a $10,500 special assessment and a $5,000 fine.
Woll, 55, of Spring Township pleaded guilty June 17 to transporting child pornography and gaining access with intent to view child pornography.
He had been an evidence custodian for Cumru police.
Prosecutors said Woll's job was to destroy old child pornography evidence in cases, but instead, he took the child pornography home.
Investigators said Woll had 189 images in a cloud-based storage system and 68 on his hard drive.
An FBI investigation began following a tip from Microsoft to the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children.
The investigation also disclosed images of minors being sexually abused by adults.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Harrell asked for a prison sentence of 10 years and one month to 12 years and five months.
"The defendant committed these crimes while employed as a police lieutenant and evidence technician for the Cumru Township police department," Harrell wrote in a sentencing memorandum.
"The children are victimized every time the images are downloaded, purchased or viewed by another person," the prosecutor wrote.
Harrell said that as a police officer in a position of trust, Woll carries a greater responsibility than other citizens to lead a law-abiding, respectful life.
According to court records:
The victim in the photographs, "Vicky," wrote that she was raped by her father when she was 10. Since her photos have been traded on the Internet, she said, she fears she may encounter someone who recognizes her.
Woll told township Police Chief Madison Winchester that he may have inadvertently uploaded child pornography to his personal cloud-based account while working at the police department wiping hard drives in child pornography cases.
The FBI later discovered the IP address associated with the pornography was Woll's house, not the police department.
Woll said he initially denied what he had done because he could not come to terms with the horrific nature of his conduct.
He later admitted the crime and said he had betrayed the most important people in his life, including his elderly mother and other family members.
"I have disgraced myself and the profession to which I was devoted," Woll said in a court document presented to the judge. "My involvement with child pornography is disgusting and my conduct was disgraceful."
Woll asked the judge for leniency so he could spend some time with his mother before she passes.
His attorney, Robert Donatoni of West Chester, asked the judge to impose the mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison, stating his client is remorseful and earned an excellent reputation in his community.
Donatoni also noted Woll did not groom children or have other child pornography.
Woll worked for Penn State Berks campus as an EMT, security guard and police officer. He worked as a part-time officer in Sinking Spring, a police officer at Kutztown University, then for Cumru township for 29 years.
When announcing the plea in June, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain said: "This is an appalling case. The defendant was a member of a law enforcement organization charged with enforcing the law and protecting the public, but instead, he chose to break the law and acquire child pornography."