On October 5, Nicholas Fountain, 38, was charged by the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office with ten counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a person less than 16 years old, fifteen counts of sexual assault, fifteen counts of indecent assault without consent, one felony count of indecent assault of someone less than 13 years old, five misdemeanor counts of indecent assault of person less than 13 years old, five counts of indecent assault of a person less than 16 years old, one count of endangering the welfare of children, and five counts of unlawful contact with a minor.
The charges followed Fountain’s arrest on September 24, 2025 by the Pennsylvania State Police of one count of sexual solicitation of a minor and one count of solicitation of child sexual abuse material originating in Harford County, Marland.
Fountain is accused of soliciting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) from a 14-year-old boy that was actually an undercover detective with the Harford County Sheriff’s Office. Fountain allegedly sent explicit photos and made online posts with titles such as “38m looking for younger.”
The additional charges were brought after a male individual reported to the Pennsylvania State Police that Fountain allegedly sexually abused him from the ages of nine to sixteen while Fountain was in a caregiving role.
Fountain has served on the Skippack Township Board of Supervisors since 2013 and is currently the Vice-Chair. Fountain also owns two daycare centers, Magnolia Enrichment Center in Skippack and Magnolia Children’s Academy in Gilbertsville. Fountain previously worked as a kindergarten teacher at the Skippack Goddard School
According to the affidavit of probable cause, Fountain allegedly admitted during an interview with detectives that he had sexually abused the individual that reported to the Pennsylvania State Police.
Fountain is currently being held in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility while awaiting extradition to Harford County. On October 5, 2025, Fountain was denied bail.
The Skippack Township Board of Supervisors called for Fountain to resign when the original charges were broughtagainst Fountain in Harford County, Maryland on September 24, 2025, if the allegations were true. The Skippack Township Board of Supervisors has not commented since the additional charges were brought on October 5, 2025.Fountain resigned from the Board of Supervisors on October 8, 2025.
The Magnolia Enrichment Center and Magnolia Children’s Academy sent letters to parents and guardians stating that Fountain would no longer be affiliated with the centers.
The CSE Institute applauds the Harford County District Attorney’s Office, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, and the Pennsylvania State Police for their cross-state coordination of Fountain’s arrest and appropriately charging Fountain for his crimes against children. Here, the facts reveal that Fountain admitted to sexually abusing the individual that reported his abuse. Without the information sharing between the Harford County Sherriff’s Office and the Pennsylvania State Police, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office may not have been able to properly charge Fountain for sexually abusing a minor. The numerous charges brought against Fountain for his sexual abuse of minors show how seriously the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office is taking the allegations and protection of young, vulnerable individuals.
Here, Fountain engaged with an undercover officer online to arrange the purchase of CSAM from who he believed to be a 14-year-old boy. Just as children cannot legally consent to being bought and sold for sex, they cannot consent to having images of their abuse recorded and distributed. Every explicit photo or video of a child engaging in a commercial sex act is evidence that the child has been a victim of sexual abuse and thus the production or distribution of child abuse material often qualifies as a form of child sex trafficking. While it is always important for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute CSAM cases to protect children from sexual exploitation and trafficking, the importance is emphasized in Fountain’s case. Without the initial investigation into Fountain’s solicitation of CSAM, it may not have been revealed that Fountain allegedly sexually abused a child. Prioritizing the investigation and prosecution of CSAM cases can lead to identifying perpetrators of child sexual abuse because research indicates that people who consume sexual abuse material are more likely to commit acts of sexual violence. Accordingly, we are pleased to see Fountain held responsible for the solicitation of CSAM.
Fountain’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for November 10. The CSE Institute will continue to provide updates as they become available.
All views expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or of Villanova University.