DNA match leads to child sex assault charges against Greensburg man

A Greensburg man was arrested Thursday on charges of sexually assaulting a 6-year-old girl last spring after a forensic test revealed his DNA was on her clothing, police said.

Michael T. Walker, 37, was arraigned on charges of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, indecent assault on a person less than 13-years-old, endangering the welfare of children and corruption of minors before District Judge Chris Flanigan.

The investigation began in May after a complaint was made to ChildLine, a statewide child abuse hotline, Greensburg Detective Sgt. John Swank reported in court documents.

The child told her parents Walker inappropriately touched her when he was watching her, Swank said. Walker denied the accusation and voluntarily submitted a DNA sample to police, Swank reported.

The clothing the girl wore on the day of the assault and Walker’s DNA sample were submitted to the state police forensic laboratory. Recently, state police reported that Walker’s DNA and DNA from material on the girl’s clothes came back as a match, Swank said.

Flanigan ordered Walker held in the county jail on $100,000 bond. A preliminary hearing is scheduled Dec. 5. The judge also ordered Walker to have no contact with minors should he post bond.

Walker’s private attorney, Michael DeMatt of Greensburg, declined comment.

In July, Swank charged Walker’s mother, Barbara Lynn Desmond, 55, with failure to report the alleged abuse after the parents brought it to her attention.

Desmond, at the time, worked as an independent-living case worker with the Westmoreland County Children’s Bureau, where she had been employed since 2007, according to police. State law requires adults who come in contact with children in a professional setting to report suspected child abuse directly to the state through ChildLine.

Desmond’s preliminary hearing has been continued several times. It now is scheduled Jan. 9 before Flanigan.