East Texas man sentenced to 230 consecutive years in prison for child sex crimes
An Anderson County man was sentenced to more than 200 years in prison for child sexual assault and child pornography.
According to Palestine Police Department (PPD), an Anderson County jury found Joseph Zeleny, 52, of Palestine, guilty on six counts of sexual assault of a child and 11 counts of possession of child pornography. On Monday, the jury sentenced Zeleny to a total of 230 consecutive years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, and ordered him to pay $160,000 in fines.
According to PPD, police were made aware of ongoing sexual abuse of a child on Dec. 26, 2023, and were informed the abuse spanned several years. Investigators conducted an expedited investigation, and secured two warrants for Zeleny for sexual assault of a child.
The arrest warrants were issued by Anderson County Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace Tammy Lightfoot, with bonds set at $300,000 for each count. A search warrant was issued for Zeleny's residence, where several evidentiary items were seized by detectives. Further investigation led to detectives seizing more than 3,000 images of child sex abuse material on his devices.
Ex-Greece day care employee sentenced to probation in child sex abuse investigation
Greece, N.Y. (WHAM) — A former Doodle Bugs day care center worker accused of sexually abusing several young children under his supervision was sentenced Tuesday to three years of probation.
Noah Hoefler, 25, of Rochester pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child during his arraignment Feb. 18 in Greece Town Court, according to New York State Police.
The investigation into Hoefler began in November 2024 when a former Doodle Bugs employee told authorities a child at the center claimed they experienced inappropriate contact with Hoefler, police said.
At Hoefler's sentencing on Tuesday, 13WHAM spoke with five former or current Doodle Bugs employees to learn more about their time working with Hoefler. The group asked to remain anonymous.
"We did our part," said former coworker #1. "These parents did their part. The court didn't."
State police said multiple victims shared incidents of abuse while under Hoefler's supervision outside the child care setting.
BACKGROUND: Police seek more victims of ex-Greece day care employee charged with sexual abuse | Rochester man accused of abusing several young children under his supervision
Hoefler turned himself in Feb. 3 and was initially charged with first-degree sexual abuse and two counts of child endangerment in relation to an incident in Hilton during summer 2024, according to police.
"He shows absolutely no remorse in the courtroom," said former coworker #2. "He's laughing and smiling with his lawyer while all of us in the back seat are crying for the kids that we tried to stick up for and he was supposed to care for."
Three five-year orders of protection were also issued during Hoefler's sentencing, prosecutors said.
"I literally had a child that was screaming and crying, saying they didn't want to sit on his lap, and he would try to bribe them with things, saying, ‘Oh, if you come sit on my lap, you'll get this'," said former coworker #3.
Hoefler's former coworkers said they all reported him to management.
"Our concerns were told to us that they weren't actually concerns," said former coworker #2.
An anonymous person who was with the group of former coworkers said, "There should have been a worse punishment for that."
"These kids have to deal with that for the rest of their lives," said former coworker #3.
47-year prison term handed down in Indian River County child sex abuse case
According to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office, Mason Faulkner was sentenced following a three-year investigation.
This comes after his 2023 arrest, when IRCSO’s Special Victims Unit charged him with lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 12 years old and possession of child sexual abuse material.
“In law enforcement, crimes against children are among the most heinous and hardest to witness, leaving a lasting impact not only on the victim and their family, but on the investigators who work these cases,” IRCSO said.
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