Pierceton Man Arrested On Several Child Neglect Charges
Pierceton Man Arrested On Several Child Neglect Charges
Posted
David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
Pierceton Man Arrested On Several Child Neglect ChargesA Pierceton man is facing three felony counts of neglect of a dependent after leaving a small child alone for an extended period of time.
Darren Jay Heinzman, 36, of 4409 E. CR 100S, Pierceton, was arrested and booked into the Kosciusko County Jail at 11:07 a.m. Thursday for neglect of a dependant - cruelly confined. His preliminary bond was set at $10,250.
Court documents filed Wednesday list the counts against him as neglect of a dependent, a level 5 felony; and two level 6 felonies of neglect of a dependent.
Since Heinzman was previously convicted and sentenced on two prior unrelated felony offenses, a habitual offender enhancement was added to the new charges.
On May 15, 2012, Heinzman was convicted of stalking, a Class C felony; and on Aug. 28, 2017, he was convicted of possession of a narcotic drug, a Class D felony.
On March 19, Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department officers responded to a complaint of an unknown vehicle at a residence. When officers arrived, they found Heinzman in the vehicle, allegedly high.
Court documents state methamphetamine and heroin were found in the vehicle. During Heinzman’s arrest, officers noticed a car seat and asked about the child. Heinzman replied, “Am I going to be charged with that also?” Officers learned the child was alone at a home Heinzman shared with a woman.
At the Syracuse residence, officers found a minor in a crib with an empty bottle, soiled diaper, dirty face and runny nose. Child Protective Services took the child into their custody. Officers believe Heinzman left the child unattended in the home for over 13 hours.
Officers downloaded Heinzman’s cellphone and found a video dated Sept. 23. In the video, Heinzman and a woman are having sex in the living room while the child is on the floor wearing only a diaper. During the couple’s sex, the child can be seen standing beside Heinzman and the woman.
In another video, Heinzman and the woman are naked on a bed and the woman is injecting drugs into Heinzman. They then have sex while the child can be seen walking around. The second video is sometime between October and March.
