A Sawyer County Jury has found a man has guilty of child sexual assault charges.
Jeffrey Froemel was found guilty of Class B Felony Repeated Sexual Assault of Same Child (3 or more 1st Degree Acts) and Class D Felony Child Enticement-Sexual Contact in Sawyer County Circuit Court on August 23, 2018 by a Jury of his peers.
Froemel was charged following an investigation by the Lac Court Oreilles (LCO) Police Department and the Sawyer County Sheriff’s Department into a report that was received stating that over a period of years, from 2005 through 2010, on multiple occasions Froemel had sexually assaulted a child born in 2000.
The criminal complaint filed against Froemel stated that he sexually assaulted a child between the ages of 5 and 9 on multiple occasions including taking nude photographs of her, making her take showers with him, and making her touch his private parts.
Online circuit court records show that the Jury deliberated for just over 30 minutes before returning with a guilty verdict on both charges.
Froemel is scheduled to be sentenced in October 2018 on his convictions.
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Trial Scheduled for Man Charged with Repeated Sexual Assault of a Child
A man charged in Sawyer County Circuit Court with Felony Repeated Sexual Assault of a Child and Felony Child Enticement is scheduled to have a Jury Trial on his charges.
Charges were filed against Jeffrey Froemel in October 2016 following an investigation by the Lac Court Oreilles (LCO) Police Department and the Sawyer County Sheriff’s Department into a report that was received stating that over a period of years, from 2005 through 2010, on multiple occasions Froemel had sexually assaulted a child born in 2000.
According to the criminal complaint, in September 2014, law enforcement received a report from Child Protective Services regarding a child born in 2000 who was stating that over a period of time when the child was between the ages of 5 and 9 Froemel had contact with her and sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions.
The child victim stated that Froemel would touch her private parts, made her touch his private parts, made her watch pronographic videos on DVD, took polaroid photographs of her while she was unclothed, made her take showers with him, and told her that when she was 18 they were going to get married. Froemel also told the child victim that all girls do these same things and that this was normal. She also stated that he would buy her anything she wanted during this time frame, as long as she cooperated with his wishes. In addition, he told the child victim that if she told anyone, he would hurt her family.
The child victim provided a lengthy detailed statement during a forensic interview, describing a time when Froemel took her to an abandoned house which was dusty and had a couch in it. She went on to describe another occasion when Froemel took her out of the bed she was sleeping in and took her downstairs in the residence where he proceeded to undress her and take pictures of her. The child victim also described an incident when another person was actually in another room of the residence, and Froemel sexually assaulted her on a couch in the living room.
The criminal complaint goes on to state that officers interviewed adults associated with the family of the child victim as well as associates of Froemel. A statement was received by a female witness who described an occasion when Froemel stayed at her residence when the child victim was also staying there. The witness caught Froemel standing over the child victim while she was sleeping and Froemel was masturbating while touching the child victim’s foot. She believed the child victim was around age 10 at the time of that incident. The witness said she told Froemel to get out.
According to the criminal complaint, law enforcement located documentation confirming that the child was listed as a resident of the home during the time frame she described in her interview, as well as records confirming that the abandoned house the child victim described was unoccupied during the time frame she referenced.
The criminal complaint was filed October 3, 2016, along with a warrant for Froemel, who was in custody at the Oak Hill Correctional Institute in Oregon, WI, at the time. The Wisconsin Department of Corrections website indicates that Froemel was released on October 4 and on October 5, 2016 he appeared for a bail bond hearing in Sawyer County Circuit Court regarding his new criminal charges. Froemel on a $25,000 cash bail bond at that time.
The maximum penalty for a conviction of Class B Felony Repeated Sexual Assault of a Child is imprisonment not to exceed 60 years. For a conviction of Class D Felony Child Enticement, the maximum penalty is imprisonment for not more than 25 years, a maximum fine of $100,000, or both.
Online circuit court records indicate that Froemel has multiple prior criminal convictions including Battery, Failure to Report to Jail, Disorderly Conduct, Criminal Trespass to Dwelling, Possession of Marijuana, Operating While Intoxicated (5th or 6th Offense), Resisting or Obstructing an Officer, and Failure to Pay Child Support.
Pursuant to the direction of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, as found in Supreme Court Rule 20:3.6, Trial Publicly, you are advised that a charge is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Last Update: Aug 26, 2018 7:46 am CDT
