Former Haunted House Owner Jailed on Child Porn Charges
Posted/updated on: September 23, 2016 at 2:50 am
TYLER — The former owner of a popular East Texas haunted house has been jailed on child pornography charges. According to KETK, Derek Ryan Laepple, 36, of Tyler, was arrested for possession of child porn by the United States Marshal Service on August 18, 2016. He is the former owner of Terror Nights Haunted House. Laepple’s sister, Laney Laepple, the company was sold to Wild Card Entertainment about two weeks ago by the mother of Laepple. The negotiation process began about two months ago.
On June 2, 2016, a Tyler police officer received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that was forwarded from the Dallas Police Department. The tip was submitted by Yahoo Inc., which stated there was a video and an image of child porn uploaded Flickr, a photo sharing/storing website affiliated with Yahoo. The officer reported both the video and image were of a young girls showing their genitals. The children were between seven and 11-years-old. A laptop, seized from Laepple’s residence, was also examined.
Laepple remains in the Smith County Jail on $500,000 bond.
