Computer notepad sale leads to child rape charges

A Pennsylvania man has been charged with child rape after an electronic notebook he sold at a flea market allegedly contained images of him with a young girl. Donald A. Miller, 43, of New Castle was charged with two counts of rape of a child; seven counts each of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, indecent assault of a person younger than 13, and photographing or filming or depicting on a computer the sex act of a child; and six counts of aggravated indecent assault of a child, police said. Miller sold the notebook to a woman at a flea market for $225. The woman brought the device home and took a photo of her daughter. When she opened the photos folder she discovered several photos and videos of Miller sexually abusing an 8-year-old girl, the New Castle News reported Saturday. The woman turned the device over to police but could only tell them the man had mentioned he lived in New Castle. Detectives used sales registries and social media to track down Miller. They served a search warrant on a home where he was thought to be living but the woman at the house said she had thrown him out several days prior. The victim lived at the residence. Social workers took custody of the child in the photos after police found the home in deplorable conditions, including no heat and sewage backing up into the basement. Lawrence County code enforcement officers deemed the house uninhabitable and ordered the residents to leave.