Phoenixville Man Gets Probation for 'Sexting' with Tweens

A Phoenixville man was sentenced to probation recently after he pleaded guilty to texting sexual advances and nude photos of himself to a pair of girls, 12- and 13-years-old at the time of the crime, The Reporter is reporting.

The investigation against Patrick Philip Stonier, 25, of the 700 block of West Bridge Street, began in February of 2011 after the mother of one of the girls, a then-13-year-old from Upper Pottsgrove, told police that a 24-year-old man was sending her daughter lewd text messages.

According to the subsequent arrest affidavit, Stonier had sent a series of inappropriate text messages, including pictures of his genitals, to the girl.

The investigation later turned up another victim, 12, whom Stonier met on Facebook and went on to have inappropriate contact with.

When authorities confronted the man, he admitted to knowing the girls were underage, and, according to the criminal complaint, further admitted to sending at least eight nude photos to his first victim and several more to his second.

After entering a guilty plea, Stonier was sentenced to undergo a mental health evaluation and serve five years probation for charges related to his contact with the girls. He will also serve six to 12 months in Montgomery County jail for violating his probation stemming from a 2010 retail theft conviction.