Man’s online relationship with teen lands him in court

Sexually explicit videos that a teenage girl who lives in Washington State made of herself and sent to a 24-year-old Saukville man at his request has landed him in trouble with the law, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday in Ozaukee County Circuit Court.

Tyler Marchek, who told authorities he was in an “online relationship” with the girl, is charged with possession of child pornography.

Saukville police officer Eric Ramthun began investigating the case after Marchek’s ex-girlfriend, who said they met via an online gaming app and started dating when she was 16 and he was 20, told Ramthun that in November 2023 she discovered Marchek was communicating with a teenage girl, the complaint states.

The ex-girlfriend said she thought it was odd that all the photos Marchek had of himself on his social media accounts were from high school and that he had not updated them.

She told Ramthun she confronted Marchek about his relationship with the teenage girl and he admitted sending nude images of himself to the girl, according to the complaint.

Ramthun was given the teenage girl’s Facebook account information, and after talking to a school resource officer in Washington and the girl’s mother he learned she is a high school student who turned 17 in September 2023.

On July 3, Ramthun spoke with Marchek, who said he met the girl through the app “Party in my Dorm: Campus Life,” a college experience role-playing game. Marchek acknowledged the girl was a 17-year-old high school student and expressed concern that their relationship might be wrong because of their age difference, the complaint states.

Marchek also told Ramthun that the girl had sent him photos of herself without a shirt on and that he had sent her similar photos, according to the complaint.

Marchek was arrested and his cell phones were seized and searched. On one of them, authorities found 2,991 instant messages exchanged between him and the girl, a large number of which were sexual in nature.

When Ramthun searched for the word “masturbate,” he found that it appeared in 15 messages Marchek sent the girl between May 5 and June 28, often in the context of him encouraging her to make videos of her doing so. About 10 such videos were found on one of Marchek’s phones. All of them were recorded in the same place, which after viewing them the girl’s mother said was a recreational vehicle parked outside their home, the complaint states.

Contacted by Ramthun, the girl said she and Marchek began exchanging videos and images a month before she turned 17, which would have been roughly August 2023. She said they continued exchanging images and videos until she found out Marchek was dating his now ex-girlfriend at the same time.

Marchek is free in lieu of a $10,000 signature bond and has been ordered by Ozaukee County Circuit Judge Sandy Williams not to have contact with anyone younger than 18 except his brother. The judge also ordered him not to possess a smart phone or use the internet.

Possession of child pornography is punishable by at least three years and no more than 15 in prison as well as a maximum 10 years of extended supervision.