LANCASTER, PA — Eric Dorwart, a 54-year-old resident of Manheim Township, is set to face a litany of charges related to child rape and pornography in Lancaster County Court. The charges came to light after a DNA match connected Dorwart to a cold case sexual assault from 1997.
Dorwart, residing in the 500 block of Pleasure Road, agreed to a stipulated preliminary hearing Tuesday afternoon before Magisterial District Judge Courtney Monson. He was initially charged on January 22, 2024. The charges include photographing, filming, and depicting a computer sex act with a minor under 18, possession of child pornography, rape of a child, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child, and aggravated indecent assault of a child. During the preliminary hearing , prosecuting Assistant District Attorney Fritz Haverstick added two charges of unlawful contact with a minor.
The story takes a grim turn back to October 2023 when Dorwart was implicated in a cold case sexual assault dating back to 1997. In this case, the victims were two young children, aged 7 and 5, who were assaulted outside their home in Gordonville, Leacock Township.
Investigators had collected DNA evidence at the time of the crime in 1997 and charged a suspect with a matching DNA profile in 2002. Over the next two decades, periodic checks of the suspect’s DNA profile in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) yielded no results.
However, in May 2023, investigators identified Dorwart as a potential suspect. They collected and tested trash left outside his residence for street pickup. On July 17, 2023, forensic DNA laboratory results confirmed that the DNA profile obtained from the trash matched the DNA saved from the 1997 sexual assault, pinpointing Dorwart as the suspect.
Following these findings, Dorwart waived his preliminary hearing on October 17, 2023, on charges of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse of a person less than 13, indecent assault of a person less than 15, and two counts of corruption of minors. He was released after posting $25,000 unsecured bail on these charges.
The case took a further disturbing turn when investigators executed a search warrant at Dorwart’s residence and uncovered electronic devices containing child pornography and videos of Dorwart participating in assaults with infants. A subsequent search warrant on a seized iPhone revealed approximately 464 fetish images, with 61 consistent with child pornography involving infant and toddler-aged victims. On laptops, investigators found 1,672 images consistent with child pornography and associated erotica. Shockingly, 167 of these images identified Dorwart engaged in sexual contact with at least three separate prepubescent children.
Investigators were ready to present this damning evidence during the preliminary hearing Tuesday before Dorwart and his defense counsel agreed to a stipulated preliminary hearing.
The Pennsylvania State Police continues its investigation to identify the victims, believed to be infants whom the Dorwart family possibly babysat. They are appealing to anyone with information that could assist in identifying the victims and any additional potential victims to contact Pennsylvania State Police Troopers Dakota Baer or Brian McNally at 717-299-7650.
Dorwart posted $250,000 bail, and ADA Haverstick requested a condition prohibiting Dorwart from having contact with individuals under the age of 18, which was granted. He is scheduled for formal arraignment at 9:00 a.m. on March 8, 2024.
As always, it’s important to remember that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Dakota Baer filed the charges.
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