Man, 30, charged with child offense
By Nick Hiltunen
Published in News on November 25, 2009 1:46 PM
A Dudley man is being held under a $1 million secured bond for an alleged first-degree sex offense with a 5-year-old girl he knew, according to the Wayne County Sheriff's Office.
David Arron Roberts, 30, of Emmaus Church Road, is facing the sex charge after an investigation that began on Nov. 7 by Detective Sgt. Larry N. Mitchell.
A first-degree sexual offense is a Class B1 felony under state law, punishable by a maximum sentence of life without parole.
Sheriff's Office Capt. Tom Effler said the 5-year-old girl was not under Roberts' care at the time, but that the girl's parents were not present during the assault.
Effler declined to say how the girl came to be alone with Roberts.
"I think he was just an acquaintance with her and the family," Effler said. "I think (the parents) actually reported it. Of course, they didn't observe it."
Investigators declined to say what type of evidence had been gathered at the crime scene, or where the alleged sexual offense took place.
A person can be found guilty of sexual offense in the first degree if a child is under the age of 13 and the defendant is at least 12 years old and four years older than the victim.
The charge also can be levied if a person "by force or against the will of the other person" uses a deadly weapon, inflicts serious injury, or is aided or abetted by one or more accomplices, according to state law.
Roberts is being held in the Wayne County Jail.