volunteer

Published on: September 27, 2022

Haunted House Owner Arrested for Sexually Assaulting Teen

The owner of a haunted house in Texas has been accused of sexual assault by a girl that volunteered at the attraction in 2017 when she was 14 years old.

According to reports, the 51-year-old owner and creator of the Scream Hollow Wicked Halloween Park near Austin, Texas, employs underage volunteers for some of the jobs at the site.

On July 30, the Bastrop County Sheriff’s Office received notification from a woman who reported that she worked as a volunteer at the theme park in 2017 when she was a teenager. She added that she also spent time with the owner outside of working hours on occasion. The girl said that the man gave her alcoholic beverages regularly, even though she was only 14 years old.

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Published on: February 10, 2018

Youth Gymnasts Allege Coach Sexually Assaulted Them in Practice Sessions

by Staycie R. Sena

A Missouri man who worked as a volunteer at a gymnastics center has been accused of touching three of his former young female students in a sexual manner.

David Schneider, a father and former volunteer sports coach for children, held the position of a gymnastics coach at the Kids in Motion gym between 2011 and 2014. Three of the girls he instructed while working there have reported incidents where Schneider allegedly touched them in an inappropriate way while they were stretching and doing the splits. The girls were age 7 or 8 at the time of the alleged assaults.

On January 9, one of the victims contacted authorities and told them that during a move that Schneider called “oversplits” his hand slipped under her shorts and between her legs while he was assisting her. She said she decided to come forward after she currently began feeling that the way she was touched did not seem as if it was proper.

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Published on: January 23, 2018

Boy Scout Leader and His Uncle Arrested in Heroin Bust

by Staycie R. Sena

A man who volunteers as a leader for the Boy Scouts in Staten Island, NY, was taken into custody for accusations that he was selling heroin out of the basement at his uncles New Brighton home. His uncle is accused of the criminal activity as well.

Kevin Saunders has worked with the Boy Scouts of America as a volunteer for nearly a year. He began taking a significant interest in working with the children when one of his cousins, the son of his uncle Adam Soler, became a member of the organization, according to a statement from Saunders’ younger brother who is 22-years-old.

When the Staten Island Narcotics Heroin Overdose Task Force was investigating the origin of the illegal narcotics in one of the recent local fatal heroin overdoses, they believed the drugs had been obtained from Saunders, and they began to look into his activities. Their efforts led them to Soler’s home, and they suspected the heroin was being distributed from that location. On Friday they obtained a search warrant to inspect the premises.

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Published on: November 10, 2017

New Jersey Volunteer Santa Arrested on Drug Charges

by Staycie R. Sena

A Pompton Lakes man who volunteers as a Santa Claus impersonator was pulled over while driving on Monday and arrested for alleged drug charges.

Charles R. Smith, a retired New Jersey Transit worker, currently does volunteer work dressing as Santa Claus for the Toys for Tots Foundation. He had been driving down Route 46 around 2:00 in the morning on Monday when South Hackensack police pulled him over for a routine traffic stop. Smith stated that he was on his way to a nearby motel at the time. One of the officers spotted a crack pipe next to Smith’s Santa suit which was hanging in the vehicle, and a search of the car allegedly uncovered empty plastic bags containing crack cocaine and heroin residue. A hypodermic needle was also said to be amongst the contraband items.

66-year-old Smith was taken into custody and faces two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia. He was released shortly after his detainment and awaits a court hearing. It is unknown whether Smith has legal representation at this time.

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