On April 26, 2023, a Dauphin County jury convicted Lykens resident Thomas Fornwald, age 67, of two counts of indecent assault of a child less than 13 years of age, indecent assault of a child less than 16 years of age, three counts of corruption of minors, and three counts of unlawful contact with a minor. That verdict came after a three-day trial during which the jury heard firsthand accounts of the assaults from the three minors. The case related to a series of assaults that took place in Fornwald’s home between 2016 and December of 2018.

The prosecutor, Senior Deputy District Attorney Katie L. Adam, credited all three victims for their strength in pursuing justice and advocating for themselves through a long court process. Senior Judge Richard A. Lewis scheduled sentencing for July 25, 2023.  The Commonwealth will be seeking mandatory life sentences. Life imprisonment is the applicable sentence because Fornwald has prior convictions for rape and indecent assault.

Corporal Hilary Faust and Trooper David Humphreys of the Pennsylvania State Police investigated the cases that resulted in these convictions.