A 75-year-old man who was charged with rape was re-indicted with four more sexual assault charges.
Thomas Shifflet of Glouster was indicted on a count of rape July 25 and pleaded not guilty to the charge two days later. Shifflet allegedly raped a 4-year-old on June 27, according to court documents.
The rape was discovered while investigating two day care centers in Trimble and Dover townships.
On Thursday, Shifflet was given a superseding indictment that added four new charges: three counts of gross sexual imposition and one count of sexual imposition, according to court documents.
One of the alleged gross sexual impositions against a 3-year-old happened on the same day as the alleged rape, according to court documents.
The other two were allegedly against an 11-year-old between March 1 and 31, 2010 and a 7-year-old between Feb. 1 and June 30, 2011, according to court documents.
The alleged sexual imposition took place Nov. 27, 2010 against a 12-year-old.
Rape is a first-degree felony, gross sexual imposition is a third-degree felony and sexual imposition is a third-degree misdemeanor.
Shifflet could be sentenced to a maximum of 25 years and two months in prison and a maximum fine of $50,500 if convicted of all charges at a trial, according to the Ohio Revised Code.
Shifflet was released from Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail on Aug. 8 after his $500,000 bond was posted. He was given an electronic monitoring device and is restricted from accessing day care centers or being with minors without their parents’ consent while the rape charge is pending, according to court documents.
Athens County Prosecutor Keller Blackburn could not be reached for comment.
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