The Chester County District Attorney’s Office and the Chester County Detectives announced the arrest of Drake Lease, 18, of Honey Brook, for sexually assaulting a 7-year-old child victim on July 19. 

Lease faces charges of Rape of a Child, Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse with a Child, and other related offenses. Magisterial District Judge J. Timothy Arndt arraigned the defendant on July 21. Lease is currently being held at Chester County Prison with a cash bail of $750,000. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for August 11.

The criminal complaint filed by the Chester County Detectives indicates that on July 20 officers from the City of Coatesville Police Department received a report that a child had been sexually assaulted. The child victim was transported to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for immediate care and a sexual assault examination by medical personnel. Chester County Detectives spoke with the child victim who disclosed that while she was sleeping at a relative’s house in West Brandywine Township, the defendant woke her, pulled off her underwear, and anally raped her.

Chester County District Attorney Christopher de Barrena-Sarobe said, “The facts of this case are gut-wrenching. No child should be sexually assaulted in the middle of the night at a relative’s house. We will continue to work side by side with local law enforcement to swiftly apprehend defendants who prey on children.”

The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The Chester County Detectives are the lead investigating agency and received assistance from the City of Coatesville Police Department and the West Brandywine Township Police Department. This is an ongoing investigation, and if anyone has information about Drake Lease or this offense, they should contact the Chester County Detectives at 610-344-6866. Assistant District Attorney Zachary Yurick is the assigned prosecutor in this case.