Montgomery County serial predator sentenced to life in prison without parole

AND Montgomery County the person was transferred several life sentences without parole for serious and persistent sexual crimes against children.

Joshua Vanarsdale, 32, was charged with continuous sexual abuse of a child, aggravated assault of a child and five counts of possession of child pornography.

Vanarsdale was first brought to the attention of local authorities when Google reported that a user had uploaded several hundred images depicting child sexual abuse. Among the uploaded content was a video showing a man, later identified as Vanarsdale, abusing a 6-year-old child. Investigators identified the victim in the video, and a search warrant was served on Vanarsdale’s home about three days after the tip came in.

Montgomery County authorities seized several devices from its residents, and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force confirmed that the devices contained thousands of images of child abuse, as well as other grotesque content such as zoophilia, torture, murder and dismemberment.

When questioned, Vanarsdale admitted that he was the person in the first tip video of the abuse. He also told investigators he had consumed the offending material for seven years.

During the inquest, another young child came forward and said Vanarsdale had abused them.

After his arrest and arraignment, Vanarsdale pleaded not guilty to all counts, but after about 30 minutes of deliberation, a Montgomery County jury on Oct. 23 found him guilty on all counts.

On October 25, he was sentenced to two life terms with an additional 50 years on five counts of possession of offensive material. All charges will run consecutively and he will never be eligible for parole.

“It is rare to find a man as driven by malice as Joshua Aaron Vanarsdale,” Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon said in a statement announcing the sentence. “His disturbing obsession with harming children and his focus on death and darkness made him a true predator hiding in plain sight. Today’s sentence ensures that he will forever be separated from society, protecting our community from the darkness within him. And this darkness is great.”