An Athens man accused of exchanging money and drugs with a Glouster woman so he could have sex with her teenaged stepdaughter was arraigned Monday in Athens County Common Pleas Court.
Fred Kittle, a registered sex offender in Athens County after being convicted of attempted rape in 1996, pleaded not guilty to an indictment charging two counts of compelling prostitution and two counts of importuning.
Although the state argued to place Kittle, 69, on a bond of $100,000, the court set a bond of $50,000.
Aileen Mays, 27, of Glouster, was sentenced to five years in prison Wednesday after changing her plea from not guilty to guilty of two indictments, one charging three counts of compelling prostitution and one trafficking in persons, one charging theft and the third charging aggravated possession of drugs. She is required to register as a tier II sex offender for the next 25 years and will not have to pay any fines other than court costs.
Athens County Prosecutor Keller Blackburn confirmed after Mays’ sentencing Wednesday that Mays allowed Kittle to have sex with the minor, who was 16 at the time, while she took drugs in his kitchen.
“They were looking to rob him,” Blackburn said in a previous Post article of Mays and her stepdaughter, though he was unsure how the two knew Kittle prior to the incident.
Although it is not confirmed, Blackburn speculated that Mays could have been after his winnings from a recent casino gambling trip.
In a Feb. 25 pretrial hearing, Mays’ attorney, William Biddlestone, who was appointed to defend her Nov. 6 after her original public defender reported a conflict of interest, said the victim is living with her grandmother.
“I support the prosecution and am proud that this is being brought to the forefront,” Megan Gallagher, president and founder of Ohio University’s End Slavery Movement, said in an email. “It should be eye-opening to those in our community to recognize this is truly (happening) right (where) we live.”
If convicted, Kittle could spend four and a half years in prison.
Blackburn said in the release that Mays will testify against Kittle, who is due in court for a pretrial April 3 and a jury trial April 15, according to court documents filed Monday.
@KELLYPFISHER
KF398711@ohiou.edu
