Ex-Penn State professor sentenced for explicit sex acts caught on camera in state park
.jpg "A former Penn State professor was sentenced to at least five months in jail after pleading guilty to two felony counts of criminal trespassing and misdemeanor counts of open lewdness, indecent exposure, sexual intercourse with an animal and defiant trespassing.")
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- Themis Matsoukas was sentenced to at least five months and up to 20 months in county jail.
- He pleaded guilty to two felony criminal trespassing counts and several misdemeanors.
- Investigators found videos showing him performing sexually explicit acts at least 55 times
A former Penn State professor was sentenced Wednesday to at least five months in jail after he was caught on camera performing sexually explicit acts in public areas and private property in central Pennsylvania.
Themis Matsoukas, 66, of Patton Township, was sentenced by Huntingdon County President Judge George N. Zanic to a maximum of 20 months in the county jail. Defense lawyer Matt McClenahen told the Centre Daily Times that Matsoukas was taken into custody immediately to begin serving his sentence.
Matsoukas was also sentenced two years of probation and ordered to pay $12,000 in fines.
State police at Huntingdon and the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said in affidavits of probable cause that they discovered dozens of videos of Matsoukas engaging in sexually explicit acts in public areas of Rothrock state forest, state lease camps and private property.
He pleaded guilty in February to two felony counts of criminal trespassing and misdemeanor counts of open lewdness, indecent exposure, sexual intercourse with an animal and defiant trespassing. A dozen charges were dropped as part of the plea agreement.
Investigators said Matsoukas was seen exposing himself and performing sexually explicit acts at least 55 times from April to June 2023. The videos showed him at least partially nude, masturbating, defecating in public areas, climbing trees while naked, enticing a dog to lick his anus and engaging in lewd acts with objects.
He was further accused of leaving bodily fluids on DCNR maintenance equipment and the property of unknowing state lease camp residents.
The former chemical engineering professor had been with Penn State since 1991. During that time, he wrote several books, published dozens of journal articles and won at least three teaching awards, including the Premier Teaching Award from the Penn State Engineering Alumni Society in 2017.
The university, which did not respond Wednesday to an email from the CDT, said in June 2023 that Matsoukas was relieved of his responsibilities and placed on leave. He remains listed in the university’s directory, though as a member without a title.
Matsoukas told investigators he performed the acts to “blow off steam.” McClenahen said the dog no longer lives with Matsoukas, whose sentence prohibits him from owning any animal.
McClenahen told the CDT he sought probation. Matsoukas has been in therapy since shortly after he was charged and two psychologists found he was unlikely to reoffend and is not a danger to the community.