By Shereen Siewert | Wausau Pilot & Review
A report of an alleged attempted sexual assault led to several drug-related arrests in Wausau after a 12-year-old girl described drug use in her home so significant that she feared for the lives of her mother and house mates, according to a criminal complaint.
“I’m just really afraid that one morning I’m going to wake up and no one in my house is going to be alive except for me and my brother,” the girl allegedly told police.
Court documents show the girl met with police Oct. 13 at her school. An advocate from The Women’s Community was present during the interview, in which the girl described sexual advances from a 32-year-old man who previously lived with her family before being arrested on drug and other charges unrelated to his alleged behavior. He has not been charged in connection with the girl’s report.
During the interview, the girl went on to identify five adults living in her home including her mother and described seeing needles, smoking devices, knives and at least one long gun inside the apartment where she and her 2-year-old brother lived. She also described seeing behavior that suggested drug trafficking at the home along with information on retail thefts that were already under investigation by the Marathon County Sheriff’s Department, court records state.
A social worker had been to the home on Oct. 5 and noted no concerns, but on Oct. 13 more than a dozen officers discovered a filthy, unkempt apartment with a strong odor of food, cat urine and dog hair. The floors were dirty and sticky, while lighters, ashtrays, cords and other hazards were among the filth – with no area designated for a toddler or a child to sleep, police said.
Along with the girl’s mother, who is not named in this story to protect the identity of her child, police arrested several people at the Townline Road apartment, one of whom allegedly had a loaded syringe on him at the time the warrant was served. The children were turned over to a relative after a buccal swab on their mother tested positive for methamphetamine and amphetamines, court records show.
As a result of the investigation prosecutors have so far filed charges against three people living in the apartment: Casey Pedersen, his cousin Kyle Pedersen and Hannah Siemers. The child’s mother, along with fifth person living at the home, are named as a co-defendants in court documents but do not show any criminal charges related to the search as of Oct. 25.
- Siemers, 27, faces charges of possessing methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possessing THC with intent to deliver and maintaining a drug trafficking place. She remains jailed on a probation hold from a previous case and will appear Nov. 7 for a preliminary hearing in the case.
- Kyle Pedersen, 18, faces charges of felony theft, possessing methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possessing THC with intent to deliver and maintaining a drug trafficking place. He is jailed on a $2,500 cash bond with a review hearing set for Friday, Oct. 28.
- Casey Pedersen, 22, faces charges of maintaining a drug trafficking place, child neglect, felony theft and bail jumping. Held on a $2,500 bond, he is due in court Wednesday for a review hearing.
Investigators nationwide are increasingly working to find ways to better serve and protect drug endangered children who live in or is exposed to an environment where drugs, including pharmaceuticals, are present for any number of reasons, including trafficking and manufacturing of these drugs. As a result of such exposure, these children experience or are at high risk of experiencing physical, sexual, or emotional abuse; harm; or neglect. According to the U.S. Dept. of Justice, these children also are at risk of being forced to participate in illegal or sexual activity in exchange for drugs or money likely to be used to purchase drugs.
In this case, surveillance video showed the girl was with Casey Pedersen when he allegedly stole a desktop computer from a Rib Mountain store earlier this month. According to the incident report, a loss prevention officer heard the girl yelling at Pederson asking what he was doing and saying, “I didn’t know you were going to do that.” That video formed the basis for the felony theft charge filed against him.
Police say packaging materials consistent with drug distribution and methamphetamine smoking devices were among the items seized at the home. Casey Pedersen is specifically accused of allowing potential exposure to distribution, manufacturing or drug abuse to both children, prompting the child neglect charges. He was also wanted on a felony Dept. of Corrections warrant at the time of his arrest.
