A Springdale man is behind bars after sexually assaulting a 15-year-old babysitter about 10 times over the spring and summer months, according to local police.
Shawn Anglin, 27, was arrested Monday on suspicion of fourth-degree sexual assault and violation of probation. He remained in the Washington County Detention Center on $5,000 bond, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Fourth-degree sexual assault is defined by state law as a situation where a person at least 20 years old engages in sexual activity with someone who is younger than 16 years old. It makes no mention of the consensual nature of the sex.
The teenage victim told investigators Anglin raped her about 10 times between March and July. Authorities were notified in August of the situation when an emergency room nurse at Cherokee Nation Hospital in Tahlequah, Okla., called the Washington County Sheriff’s Office after the victim visited the hospital, according to an arrest warrant affidavit filed in Washington County Circuit Court.
A woman claiming to be the friend of the victim later told investigators she believed the sex between the alleged victim and the suspect were consensual, and that the victim had told her she had willingly had sex with Anglin.
The alleged victim told authorities she would regularly babysit an acquaintance’s children earlier in the year. She was babysitting the children in mid-March the first time she was allegedly raped by Anglin. While the victim was in the home’s bathroom, Anglin allegedly approached her and said, “Do you know you are pretty hot?” After declining Anglin’s sexual advances, the victim pushed the suspect out of the way and tried to leave, when Anglin grabbed her and pushed her onto a nearby bed, according to the arrest warrant affidavit.
Anglin then reportedly said, “I am fixing to have sex with you,” before raping her on the bed, the affidavit states.
The suspect allegedly raped the victim again in April on the home’s kitchen floor while she was over babysitting the children again. In a separate June incident, the suspect allegedly told the victim, “It’s just me and you tonight,” before raping her on the bathroom floor, according to court documents.
The victim brought a friend to babysit with her at the home in July, when Anglin asked the girls if they wanted to have a threesome. The girls declined, and Anglin allegedly raped the victim when she was separated from her friend, the affidavit states. The friend later told police it was the victim’s idea to have a threesome, and that the victim had told her the sex was consensual.
When interviewed by Sheriff’s Office deputies in August, Anglin admitted to having sex with the victim, but said it was consensual. He guessed the victim’s age as “15 or 16” and stated he did not know the legal age of consent in the state, deputies said.
A warrant for Anglin’s arrest was issued Nov. 6.
