A Union Township man is behind bars after two separate incidents at the Giant Eagle on Route 88 in Finleyville that Monongahela police say involved a man following children through the store and touching them. Court paperwork and police reports state one episode happened on May 31 and another on June 3, when a child was reportedly touched under her shirt. The suspect was arraigned Friday and is being held in the Washington County jail without bond ahead of a preliminary hearing.
What police say happened
Monongahela police report that on May 31, a 7-year-old girl told her father that a man had been “smiling and looking” at her and trailing the family around the store, which prompted the father to confront the man. Investigators say the same man came back on June 3 and approached a mother with two small children, then lifted a 4-year-old girl’s shirt and rubbed her chest and stomach, according to court paperwork. Online records and the state sex-offender registry indicate the suspect has prior indecent-assault convictions from more than a decade ago, authorities say, as reported by Observer-Reporter.
How investigators identified the suspect
According to police, the mother from the first reported incident turned to the state Megan’s Law database to track down the man she had seen in the store. Investigators then compared Giant Eagle surveillance images with a matching entry in the registry. Officers later went to the man’s home on Airport Road, not far from the store, and noted that he was wearing the same shirt seen in the surveillance footage, police wrote in court documents. Those details are included in court filings summarized by CBS Pittsburgh.
Charges and court timeline
Washington County court records show 41-year-old Dustin Arch Deshong is charged with indecent assault of a child under 13, corruption of minors, harassment and eight counts of stalking. He was arraigned Friday before District Judge Phillippe Melograne and sent to the Washington County jail without bond. A preliminary hearing was tentatively scheduled for Monday at 2:45 p.m., according to Observer-Reporter. Prosecutors are continuing to review the evidence and store footage.
What the charges mean under Pennsylvania law
Indecent assault is defined at 18 Pa.C.S. § 3126 and covers non-consensual sexual contact. When the alleged victim is a child under 13, the offense can be graded more severely. Stalking and harassment laws address repeated following or a course of conduct that causes fear or substantial emotional distress; the stalking statute appears at 18 Pa.C.S. § 2709.1. Any sentence, along with whether sex-offender registration is required, depends on how the charges are graded and the defendant’s prior record.
What happens next
Deshong remains in custody as Washington County courts move the case through the early stages. The accusations are outlined in criminal complaints and supporting paperwork and remain allegations at this point. Investigators are still reviewing evidence and surveillance video as the case approaches the scheduled preliminary hearing, according to CBS Pittsburgh.
