The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.
In 2018, Benjamin Roberts, a childcare worker at Wylie Baptist Church Child Development Center in Abilene, Texas was arrested on child sex crime and child pornography charges. He was also charged with the continuous abuse of children. Later, an arrest warrant was issued for Amanda McKee, the director of Child Development Center. She was charged with failing to report the alleged crimes committed by Roberts.
Roberts was later convicted on federal child pornography charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
The Abilene Reporter News reported:
Benjamin Roberts was sentenced March 1 to 20 years in prison by a federal court, Abilene police said in a news release Friday.
He was charged at the federal level with child pornography and still faces state charges for continuous sexual abuse of a child and second degree felony indecency with a child by sexual contact.
Roberts was a worker at Wylie Baptist Church’s Child Development Center when he was accused of indecency with a child and possession of child pornography, according to Reporter-News archives.
Abilene detectives began investigating Roberts in February 2018 after serving a search warrant on a residence in the 400 block of Cockerell Drive in northeast Abilene, where a resident was downloading child pornography, police said Friday.
Roberts was arrested March 28 on charges of possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony, and indecency with a child, a second-degree felony.
In addition, a Taylor County grand jury in June indicted him on one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child.
In August, police said the local charge of possession of child pornography had been dropped.
Roberts was released Aug. 22 from the Taylor County Jail after his bond was reduced to $50,000 each on the two remaining local counts.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation “picked up the charges and arrested (him)” days later on federal charges, police said.
Roberts’ re-arrest was a collaborative effort between Taylor County, the Abilene Police Department and the FBI.
Amanda McKee, director of the center at the time of Roberts’ employment, was arrested in May on charges of failing to report suspected child abuse.
Police said there had been complaints by parents and staff to McKee regarding Roberts.
Roberts, who had been working at Wylie Baptist Church Child Development Center for two years, previously was employed at a daycare at Southern Hills Church of Christ and with youth programs at Beltway Park Church.
Last year, police said Roberts had at least five different victims, all under the age of 14.
In October 2019, McKee faced her day in court.
An Abilene day care manager accused of not reporting allegations of inappropriate behavior by an employee now charged with multiple child sex crimes testified during her trial Wednesday.
Amanda McKee, who served as manager of the Wylie Baptist Church Early Childhood Development Center, addressed a packed courtroom, saying “it wasn’t may job to watch a screen all day”, and that’s why she overlooked a lot of worker Benjamin Roberts’ behavior that employees and parents say was ‘strange’.
Surveillance videos played during Day 1 of McKee’s trial for Misdemeanor Failure to Report showed several instances of 26-year-old Roberts putting children on his lap while bouncing and kissing them.
One video showed him chest to chest with a child on his lap and another showed him standing in front of a different child, who was standing with his face close to Roberts’ lower body during a ‘lice check’.
McKee says she did see children in Roberts’ lap, but it was “not like that”, so she didn’t feel compelled to look into the allegations of inappropriate behavior multiple parents and employees say they reported to her.
Reports including allegations that Roberts would following young children into the bathroom and that he would have an erection while they sat in his lap.
When asked why she didn’t report the allegations, McKee began crying, saying that if people had come forward to her with information like this, she would have done something about it.The parents and employees who say they reported to McKee also testified and maintained they did tell McKee they were suspicious with how Roberts interacted with the children.
A total of 20 children were forensically interviewed in connection to Roberts and investigators believe he had sexual contact with at least 8.
McKee was convicted and sentenced to probation, community service, and a fine.
A former Abilene daycare worker accused of not reporting allegations of inappropriate behavior by one of her employees was found guilty on Wednesday.
Amanda McKee, who served as manager of the Wylie Baptist Church Early Childhood Development Center, heard the verdict just after 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
She was sentenced by the judge to 1 year probation, 24 hours of community service, and a $1,000 fine plus court costs. The punishment is per a prearranged agreement between the defense and prosecution in the event a guilty verdict was reached.
She testified on Wednesday, saying “it wasn’t may job to watch a screen all day,” and that’s why she overlooked a lot of worker Benjamin Roberts’ behavior that employees and parents say was “strange.”
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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I’m sorry she didn’t get any jail time. What a useless piece of crap.
Oh. And if you even think something might be going on with your child and the adults charged with caring for them, get them the hell out of there. Trust your instincts.
Allegations like those should ALWAYS be investigated. They should ALWAYS be reported.