Delco man gets lengthy state prison term for raping 13-year-old Upper Providence girl
With Montgomery County prosecutors waiting in the wings, poised to present DNA evidence at trial linking Barry Cunningham, 45, of Delaware County, to the rape of a 13-year-old Upper Providence Township girl, admitted to his crimes as part of a plea agreement and was given two decades in state prison.
Cunningham, of the 1100 block of East 8th Street, was sentenced to 10 to 20 years on charges of rape and endangering the welfare of a child in connection to the July 3, 2024 incident on Campus Drive in the township, according to court records and The Mercury.
Cunningham indecently touched the girl and forcibly raped her, according to authorities.
The defendant is also ordered to complete three years of probation after parole, plus he must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
Senior Judge Thomas C. Branca ordered Cunningham to have no contact with the victim, her family or other minors.
Cunningham, who previously pleaded guilty to the charges, also must comply with all recommendations for treatment stemming from a psychosexual evaluation, per The Mercury
Cunningham knew the girl’s family, according to testimony reported by The Mercury. The plea agreement spared the child from having to re-live the assault and testify at a trial, the newspaper said.
Investigators said at 6:38 p.m. on July 3, 2024, the victim’s mother called police to report the rape of her daughter while she was in the care of Cunningham. According to The Mercury, the girl told detectives “she was shaking and moving” during the assault.
According to the complaint, the victim told Cunningham, “No, I don’t want to do that.”.During the assault, Cunningham told the girl, “You have to do whatever I say now, and you better not tell anyone or it’s going to be a problem,” according to the arrest affidavit.
Once Cunningham left the residence, the victim reported the rape to her mother. She was taken to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in King of Prussia for a sexual assault examination, police said.
According to The Mercury, authorities alleged that Cunningham reached out to the girl after his arrest and attempted to intimidate her to withhold testimony at a trial.
Other charges of corruption of a minor, unlawful contact with a minor, aggravated indecent assault of a minor, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and intimidation of a witness were dismissed against Cunningham as part of the plea agreement at the time of sentencing, The Mercury said.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
