Detective: Stop threatening family of sex-charge suspect
Innocent people are being harassed and threatened
PERKINS TWP. — The family of a man arrested earlier this month on a sex charge involving children is being endangered and threatened, according to police Detective Joe Rotuna.
The investigation into Robert Stein has sparked intense community backlash, but Rotuna is urging the public to direct their attention toward the facts of the case rather than the suspect’s wife and children, who have been cooperative with law enforcement.
“The biggest problem is, everybody thinks that the wife knew everything was going on... was condoning it,” Rotuna said. “That’s not the case, so we’re just trying to get that cleared up and get that out to people, because there’s been some certain threats of violence and stuff towards (the family.”
Setting the Record Straight
Detective Rotuna emphasized that misinformation regarding the timing of the arrest and the family’s knowledge of the allegations is fueling the harassment. Police clarified that the suspect’s wife took immediate action long before the search warrant was executed:
Immediate Action: Upon learning of her husband’s alleged wrongdoing, she “immediately asked him to move out of the house and started the divorce proceedings.”
Living Situation: At the time of the police raid, the suspect was no longer living at the residence; he had moved.
The Arrest: Stein was not arrested inside the family home. He was stopped by police before the search warrant was conducted.
Plea for civility
Law enforcement is reminding the community that the family members are victims in their own right during this process.
“We just want to make members of the community aware that [the threats] shouldn’t be happening,” Rotuna said, adding that the suspect’s family has “cooperated during this entire investigation.”
The Perkins Police Department continues to pursue the criminal case against Stein, but they are asking for civility toward his family as the legal process moves forward.
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