WEST CHESTER, PA — The Chester County District Attorney’s Office announced the arrest Friday of 77-year-old Kenneth Walls of Downingtown, for the sexual abuse of a child, now 12 years old, from 2020 to 2022. The defendant, a former staff football coach at Downingtown West High School, recently volunteered as a coach for the football team.
Walls is charged with multiple counts of aggravated indecent assault, involuntary deviant sexual intercourse, and related charges. He is held at Chester County Prison on $100,000 cash bail set by Chester County Magisterial District Judge Ann Feldman.
“The child victim in this case showed tremendous courage by telling a mandated reporter at her school about this awful abuse,” Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan. “The defendant engaged in a common pattern of child predators: he lavished the child with gifts, took her shopping, and made her feel special. In fact, he was grooming her and her family by duping them into thinking he was a kind and generous man. These despicable criminal violations will have life-altering consequences for this child and her family, and we will do everything possible to get justice for them.”
Downingtown Area School District Superintendent Robert O’Donnell said, “Each day that parents send their children to school, they entrust our district with their safety. As a district, we take that responsibility seriously and will continue to work with our staff, students, families, law enforcement and community to maintain a safe educational environment for all children.”
The allegations in the complaint are as follows:
On Nov. 3, 2022, Chester County Detectives learned that a 12-year-old victim told a staff member at her school in another county that the defendant had been sexually abusing her on numerous occasions for the past two to three years. The victim told investigators that the sexual abuse happened at the defendant’s house in Downingtown.
Detectives discovered the victim sometimes stayed at the defendant’s house and that he bought her a cell phone, hoverboard, and ear pods. He would text and call the victim multiple times a week. The victim told detectives that the defendant took her out for meals, shopping, and to fairs or carnivals.
The case is being investigated by the Chester County Detectives, and is being prosecuted by Senior Deputy District Attorney Erin O’Brien. A preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 16, 2022.
Call Childline at 1-800-932-0313 if you suspect a child is being abused.
Learn to recognize, react to, and report child sexual abuse by taking a free virtual Stewards of Children workshop. Contact County Coordinator Elisa Mendoza at emendoza@chesco.org or 610-344-5576 for more information.
Information is subject to change at any time as additional details may emerge. Information, a criminal complaint, or an arrest is not a declaration of guilt. A suspect, arrestee, or defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
For the latest news on everything happening in Chester County and the surrounding area, be sure to follow MyChesCo on Google News and Microsoft Start.