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Paedophile shocks US cops
17/06/2005 09:37 - (SA)
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| A police file picture of Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller. (San Jose Police Department, AP) |
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Rachel Konrad
California - A convicted child molester jailed in California may have committed sex crimes against thousands of victims, police said on Thursday after finding computers, notebooks and meticulous, handwritten lists of boy' names and apparent codes for various sex acts.
Police believe he may have victims in Brazil and Mexico.
San Jose Police Lieutenant Scott Cornfield described 63-year-old Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller as "one of the most active child molesters we've ever seen."
During a search of his bedroom in San Jose, police discovered binders full of child porn and numerous logs with lists of more than 36 000 children's names - mostly boys - and codes that appear to indicate how he abused them.
"If one-tenth of these numbers are accurate, we're looking at hundreds of victims in a number of states. The reason we want to tell the world about this is because we believe he's been involved in child molestations in a number of countries," Cornfield said.
Schwartzmiller was being held without bail on one count of aggravated sexual assault on a child and six counts of lewd and lascivious conduct on a child, with each count alleging multiple victims. He was arrested in Washington state late last month and sent to San Jose on June 7.
A message left for his public defender was not immediately returned on Thursday.
Authorities said Schwartzmiller apparently gained the trust of victims and parents by working as a home renovation contractor.
He apparently did not register as a sex offender, so his history did not appear in the Megan's Law databases in California or other states, authorities said.
"It's as shocking to me as to you," said Sergeant Tom Sims, a supervisor with the department's child exploitation division. "I've never seen anything like this."
Although police said Schwartzmiller appears to have spent much of the past 30 years in California, he has also been arrested on child molestation charges in New York, Idaho, Oregon, Arkansas and Washington. Police said he also has lived in Nevada and Texas.
San Jose police got involved after Schwartzmiller allegedly befriended at least two boys in the city with gifts, invited them to his house for video games and movies, and molested them.
He also is wanted in Oregon on sexual assault charges involving a minor. He also served prison time in Idaho for child molestation in the late 1970s. He then lived in Brazil, and was extradited from there to Idaho again in the late 1980s to serve more time, Cornfield said.
Police believe he may have victims in Brazil and Mexico.
Authorities also arrested Schwartzmiller's roommate - another convicted child molester wanted for violating parole in Oregon. Fred Everts also was charged with child molestation in San Jose.
Associated Press Writer Kim Curtis in San Francisco contributed to this report.
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