HARDIN - The Calhoun Sheriff's Office has issued charges after a long investigation of a sexual assault case.
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The timeline on the case goes as follows:
On October 22nd, 2024, the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office was notified of a Sexual Assault which was alleged to have occurred on October 20th, 2024, in the 900 block of Herren St., Hardin, Calhoun County.
The victim came into the Sheriff’s Office and was interviewed by Chief Deputy Zach Hardin, and subsequently escorted to Alton Memorial Hospital for a sexual assault examination.
Following the initial investigation, an arrest warrant was issued for the suspect identified by the victim.
The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office was further notified that the suspect had left the area and returned to his home, located in the area of Pineville, Louisiana.
Chief Deputy Hardin contacted the Pineville Police Department, who immediately assisted in the investigation. On October 30th, 2024, Pineville Police Department took the suspect into custody, and he was held pending extradition back to Illinois.
On November 3rd, 2024, Chief Deputy Hardin and Deputy Austin Phillips traveled to Pineville, Louisiana to extradite the suspect back to Calhoun County, Illinois for prosecution.
The suspect denied the allegation and was subsequently interviewed and consented to having his phone examined.
Following further investigation, which included additional witness interviews, video surveillance, and license plate readers; it was determined that the alleged victim had falsified her statements to law enforcement officials.
On November 5th, 2024, all charges put forth against the original suspect were dismissed.
On November 15th, 2024, the initial reporting party, Kelcey J Herter, aged 30, of Hardin, Illinois, was arrested for the offense of Disorderly Conduct (False Reporting to a Peace Officer), which is a Class 4 Felony.
The offense of False Reporting, especially in the circumstances of a sexual assault; is one that will always be taken seriously by the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office. In this specific instance, this investigation resulted in a large cost to the taxpayers in both investigative time as well as transportation costs.
Furthermore, in this circumstance; it also caused a person to be arrested and jailed, causing an excessive hardship on their own personal life.
Chief Deputy Hardin would like to reiterate that all complaints of sexual assault will be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly; and further stated that it is not easy for sexual assault victims to come forward and hopefully this does not discourage anyone else from reporting an incident of abuse or sexual assault.
The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the Pineville Louisiana Police Department, Jersey County Sheriff’s Department and the Illinois Department of Child & Family Services and the Calhoun County State’s Attorney’s Office for their assistance in this case.
All suspect(s) are innocent until proven guilty.
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