South Whitehall man had 3,000 images of child sex abuse, DA says

A South Whitehall Township man had more than 3,000 images and videos of child sexual abuse on his electronic devices, according to authorities.

Jared Hudak, 42, was arraigned Friday on charges alleging he disseminated the images and videos last year. He is charged with 25 counts of child sexual abuse materials, and 13 counts each of disseminating child photos of child sex acts and criminal use of a communications facility.

Undercover investigators discovered that on at least 13 occasions between Oct. 30 and Dec. 9, Hudak was sharing the digital files online, according to a Lehigh County District Attorney’s office news release. State police, South Whitehall police and Homeland Security agents searched his home in December and seized 11 electronic storage devices, the DA’s office said.

More than 3,000 images and videos of child sexual abuse were found on those devices, authorities said. The children in the images and videos ranged from infants to 12 year-olds, the DA’s office said.

Hudak is free after posting $10,000 bail.