Milford, PA.-Pike County District Attorney Ray Tonkin announced the conviction of a Luzerne County man who traveled to Pike County to engage in sex with two children ages 5 and 10. John Gately, age 46, with a last known address of Hughestown, Pennsylvania, was originally arrested in May 2024 after an investigation by the Pike County District Attorney’s Office Criminal Investigation Division. After investigators learned that Gately was traveling to Pike County to engage in sex with two children, they arrested him when he arrived in Pike County.

                Gately had been communicating with a woman regarding his desire to engage in sexual contact with her two children. During the communication, Gateley sent forty-eight child sexual abuse images.  Further investigation revealed more child sexual abuse material on Gately’s cell phone that contained many videos of toddlers, as well as even infants being abused.

                Investigators, with the assistance of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Child Victim Identification Program were able to identify children depicted in the child sexual abuse videos were abused both here in the United States and in foreign countries.

                After a three-day trial, the Pike County jury convicted Gately of fifty-eight charges, all felonies.  The jury convicted Gately of two counts of criminal attempt to rape a child, two counts of criminal attempt to commit involuntary deviate sexual intercourse of a child, criminal attempt to commit aggravated indecent assault, criminal attempt to produce child sexual abuse material, criminal solicitation to commit sexual exploitation of a child, forty-eight counts of dissemination of child sexual abuse material, possession of child sexual abuse material and criminal use of a communication facility.  The jury found that the child sexual abuse material contained images depicting indecent contact of children under the age of ten.

                After trial, Pike County President Judge Gregory H. Chelak revoked bail, and Gately was remanded back to the custody of the Pike County Correctional Facility.

District Attorney Tonkin, who prosecuted the case, praised the hard work of Chief County Detective Molly Carson who investigated the case for the District Attorney’s Office.  Tonkin stated: “Chief Detective Carson has an unrivaled dedication to investigating and arresting those that prey on children whether by sexual or physical abuse and it was her hard work that made this case a successful prosecution of a sexual predator that was looking to prey on two small children.”   Tonkin also thanked the jury for their time and attention to the case. Tonkin remarked “The jurors who were selected to hear this case had to endure viewing images of the sexual abuse of children that depict unfathomable abuse of children. We appreciate their time and attention to this case to see justice was done.”

                Assisting with the apprehension of Gately were the Pennsylvania State Police, and the Department of Homeland Security with the Wyoming Valley Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Task Force. Staff at Dickson House Children’s Advocacy also provided assistance during the investigation.

                Gately is scheduled for sentencing on February 20, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. before President Judge Chelak.  He will be ordered to undergo an assessment by the Sexual Offenders Assessment Board to determine if Gately meets the criteria to be designated as a sexually violent predator.

                Anyone who has any information on any person abusing children should call Pennsylvania Childline at 800-932-0313.