A convicted sex offender was sentenced on Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, to 11 to 24 years in state prison for sharing child sexual abuse material.

Charles William Guthier, 56, of Quakertown, pled guilty in September to disseminating child sexual abuse material, possession of child pornography, and criminal use of a communication facility.

He appeared before Common Pleas Judge Wallace H. Bateman Jr., who sentenced him to five to 10 years on the first count, five to 10 years on the second count and 1 to 4 years on the third count with sentences running consecutively.  As a Tier III sex offender, Guthier will have to register with Megan’s Law for the rest of his life. 

In October 2023, a sergeant with the Warrington Township Police Department was conducting an online investigation and identified a host computer using peer-to-peer file sharing software.

The sergeant was able to identify 71 files of child sexual abuse material, also known as child pornography, being shared by the host computer.

The IP address of the host computer was later confirmed to belong to defendant Charles Guthier. 

On Feb. 21, a search warrant was executed at Guthier’s home and investigators seized several electronics and storage devices. The FBI’s Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory conducted a forensic analysis of the seized items and found nearly 2,500 files depicting child sexual abuse material. Those files included the 71 files that were identified in October 2023 by the sergeant. 

Police issued an arrest warrant for Guthier on March 21, and police learned that he was arrested in South Padre Island by the U.S. Border Patrol, close to the border into Mexico. He was eventually extradited back to Bucks County.

Through the investigation, law enforcement learned that Guthier was already registered as a sex offender on Megan’s Law because of a previous conviction.

This investigation was conducted by Warrington Township Police Sgt. Kevin Stebner, with assistance from the U.S. Border Patrol, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office, Bucks County Detectives, the Quakertown Borough Police Department, the Hilltown Township Police Department and the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney David E. O’Beirne.

Media Contact: Manuel Gamiz Jr., 215.348.6298, mgamiz@buckscounty.org