A Pennsylvania piano instructor is accused of improperly abusing at least four young boys during private lessons more than two decades ago.
Timothy James Shay, a 49-year-old individual, has been accused of committing multiple offenses. In February, prosecutors filed charges against him for four counts each of indecent assault of a person under the age of 13 and corruption of minors. This announcement was made public on Friday.
Shay is accused of massaging and inappropriately touching the victims on numerous occasions, with one victim claiming to have been assaulted 30 to 50 times.
Shay remains in custody at the Bucks County Correctional Facility, with bail set at 10 percent of $1 million. Authorities are concerned that there could be additional victims and are urging anyone else who may have been affected to come forward.
Here’s what we know: Timothy James Shay, a 49-year-old man, allegedly engaged in inappropriate behavior by massaging young boys during private piano lessons held from the late 1990s to the early 2000s.
According to investigators, Shay explained to the boys that the massages and subsequent touching were piano warm-ups and advised them not to tell anybody.
One victim told investigators that Shay began the abuse by stroking his arms and neck and that the touching got increasingly inappropriate over time. The victim estimated that the abuse occurred 30 to 50 times.
Investigators interviewed three other victims who claimed to have had similar experiences with Shay during private piano lessons around the same period. One victim told authorities that the assault occurred for 15 minutes of each half-hour instruction.
What Comes Next: Shay faced charges of indecently assaulting a person under the age of 13 and corrupting minors.
The individual is currently being held at the Bucks County Correctional Facility, with bail set at 10% of $1 million.
Investigators are concerned that there may be additional victims and are urging anyone with information to come forward.