State police at Rockview on Wednesday filed a long list of new charges, including human trafficking, against the three men accused of sexually abusing teenage girls and recording the encounters inside a Centre County home.
The new charges come as investigators have spent the days after the arrests of Samuel C. Friday, Michael H. Woomer and Morris W. Reese reviewing evidence and interviewing witnesses to put together a complete picture of what has happened in the basement of Friday’s Taylor Township residence over what prosecutors say was a period of years.
Friday, 67, is now charged with two counts of trafficking in individuals, two counts of patronizing victims of human trafficking and 20 counts related to producing and possessing child sexual abuse material. All of the charges are felonies.
Reese, 64, of Blair County is charged with two counts each of trafficking in individuals and patronizing victims of human trafficking and 10 counts related to child sexual abuse material. Woomer, 66, of Taylor Township, is charged with one count of patronizing a victim of human trafficking and 10 counts related to child sexual abuse material.
Acting on multiple Childline referrals alleging that Friday paid juveniles to perform sexual acts, state police at Rockview searched his home on Nov. 17 and uncovered numerous videos and photographs of all three men engaged in intercourse and a range of other sexual activity with girls known and suspected to be under the age of 18, according to affidavits of probable cause. Investigators say they also found a bed, provocative outfits, a wall-mounted digital camera and sex toys.
The three men could also be heard instructing the girls to undress or dress in particular outfits, and they took lewd photos of the juveniles partially and fully nude, according to the affidavits.
Since the arrests, police have interviewed multiple witnesses who said Friday and Reese enticed victims with money and entertainment and transported them to Friday’s home, where the three men propositioned them to perform sexual acts, according to the affidavits.
In an interview with police after his arrest, Friday admitted to taking nude photographs of a juvenile stepping out of the shower and that he had “some sexual involvement” with the same girl, according to an affidavit of probable cause. He “indicated that the juvenile female requested sexual acts from him possibly in exchange for money,” police wrote.
No statements from Woomer or Reese have appeared in the complaints filed against them.
At a press conference on Monday, when prosecutors announced the new charges would be forthcoming, Centre County First District Attorney Joshua Andrews said that Friday, Woomer and Reese “account for every adult male suspected at this point to be involved,” but the number and identities of all potential victims remain unknown.
Most of the potential victims reside in neighboring Blair County, Andrews said. Friday’s home is near the Blair County line and bears a Tyrone address.
The charges filed on Wednesday indicate the alleged activity has been going on since at least 2021. Some allegations indicate that Friday’s alleged conduct may date back to the 1990s, Andrews said.
Possible victims who feel ready to come forward and anyone with information related to the case are asked to contact Trooper Jonathan Hodges at the state police Rockview barracks or by calling at (814) 355-7545, or County Detective John Aston in the District Attorney’s Office at (814) 355-6735.
Investigators will respect the wishes of anyone who comes forward “in terms of what happens with the information that they provide,” Andrews said.
“Whether you are a teenager, a parent, an adult survivor or someone who has silently carried this burden for decades: you can come forward. You deserve support. And you deserve to be heard,” Andrews said. “Our team of prosecutors, investigators and victim-advocacy professionals will treat you with respect, dignity and compassion. You will not be judged. You will not be pressured. And you will not go through this alone.”
Friday, Woomer and Reese were preliminarily arraigned on Wednesday morning and remain incarcerated at the Centre County Correctional Facility without bail.
Preliminary hearings are scheduled for Dec. 10.
