UPDATE: Abigail Bertholf Found Safe, Jeffery Shelton Found Guilty Sentenced To 120 Years In Prison

Posted: Oct 24, 2012 9:16 AM CDT
Updated: Oct 24, 2012 2:18 PM CDT

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Abigail Bertholf (Source: Poplar Bluff Police Department)

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Jeffery Shelton from June 28, 2012 (Source: Poplar Bluff Police Department)

POPLAR BLUFF, MO (KAIT) – Poplar Bluff Police have confirmed that the hunt for a registered sex offender and a 5-year-old is now over.

Although police cannot give very much information on the capture, they have said that both Abigail Bertholf and 46-year-old Jeffery Shelton, of Poplar Bluff, are now both in police custody. They were found in southern Butler County near the intersection Highway 67 and Highway 160.

FAMILY HISTORY:

Jason Michael Bertholf arrested for possession of child pornography

Police say Abigail is said to be safe and sound.

It appears that Shelton was still in the vehicle police were searching for.

During a press conference earlier Wednesday, the Poplar Bluff Police department pleaded with Shelton to release Abigail, who was reported missing early Wednesday morning.

"Let her out at a convenience store or a hospital. Let's get her back safely," said Police Chief Danny Whiteley.

Police did issue an Amber Alert for Abigail, who was thought to be in the company Shelton.

According to investigators, the child's mother, Eva Crawford, said she last saw her at 10 p.m. Tuesday when she put her to bed in her home on the 2100 block of Woods Street. She said when she woke up before 6 a.m., and noticed Abigail was missing.

Abigail was reported missing around 6:50 a.m.

Poplar Bluff Police Captain Dave Sutton said Shelton is not related to Abigail or her family, and Deputy Jeff Rolland said Crawford told police she had last seen Abigail asleep on the couch in the living room of her home.

"[We] can't disclose anything on his background that led to him as a suspect. This is a dangerous individual. Let law enforcement handle it," explained Whiteley.

Captain Sutton also said that officers had originally responded to the home due to a domestic assault call, and Shelton was last seen leaving Wood Street with Abigail by his side around 6:30 a.m., though police have not said who reported the sighting.

Family members we spoke with say police cut out part of a window screen and took part of the couch for evidence.

Neighbors say Shelton hung around the area a lot. One mother says she confronted Shelton about being too close to her children.

Shelton is a registered sex offender.  According to Missouri State Highway Patrol, Shelton was arrested in 1990 for the kidnapping, rape, and sodomy of a 12-year-old girl in Fort Hood, Texas.

The Poplar Bluff and Butler County Major Case Squad responded to the incident, and a command post was set up at the Poplar Bluff Police Department. Additional help is coming from the Federal Bureau of Investigation from Cape Girardeau and St. Louis Missouri.

Region 8 News does have Courtney Brown on the way to Poplar Bluff to pick up more information as soon as it is released.

We will continue to update this story on [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and region8togo.com

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I could have sworn we had a thread on this.

Police: Missing 5-year-old girl from Poplar Bluff, Mo., is found safe

26 minutes ago • FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS6

UPDATED at 2 p.m. with discovery of girl.

Police in Poplar Bluff, Mo., say a 5-year-old girl reported abducted this morning has been found and is safe.

Abigail Bertholf was found about 1:45 p.m., police said.

No other details about the girl's discovery or her alleged abductor were immediately available.

Authorities on Tuesday morning issued an Amber Alert for a the girl after police said she was abducted late Tuesday night or early this morning by a convicted sex offender.

Authorities were looking for Abigail Bertholf, who police say was taken from Poplar Bluff between 10 p.m. Tuesday and 6 a.m. today. Police said they were seeking Jeffrey D. Shelton, 45, in the case.

Shelton is a registered sex offender, according to the Missouri Highway Patrol. He was convicted of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl in Texas in 1990.

Poplar Bluff officer Darron Moore said the child's mother discovered just before 7 a.m. that she was missing and contacted police. A witness saw the child leaving the area of the home with Shelton, who lives about a mile away, Moore said.

Moore said the girl's family does not know Shelton and it wasn't clear what would have led him to the child, or how he would have been able to get her out of the home.

"We don't have any knowledge if it was forced entry or how he got in or how she got out," Moore said.

Police said Shelton is believed to be driving a silver 2001 Nissan Pathfinder with Missouri license plate PJ8 Z5M.

Anyone with information about their whereabouts is asked to call the FBI at 1-888-265-8639

Poplar Bluff is about 150 miles south of St. Louis.

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Police find missing Poplar Bluff girl with convicted sex offender

by KMOV.com staff
KMOV.com
Posted on October 24, 2012 at 2:17 PM
Updated today at 2:27 PM

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. (KMOV.com) – Police have located a young girl who was abducted from her Poplar Bluff home by a convicted sex offender Wednesday morning.

Police said Abigail Berthoff, 5, was found in Jeffrey Shelton’s vehicle near Highway 67 and Highway 160 shortly before 2 p.m.. She appeared to be unhurt, but was taken to an area hospital as a precaution, according to police.

Shelton, a convicted sex offender, was transported to the Poplar Bluff Police Station.

Berthoff was initially reported missing from her home in the 2100 block of Wood Street around 6:50 a.m. Police said Berthoff’s mother, Eva Crawford said she last saw her daughter sleeping on the couch in their living room around 10 p.m. Tuesday night.

Police said Abigail had last been seen with Shelton, 46. A person who knows Shelton saw the two together. When asked if the two had ever been seen together before, the witness said, “no.”

Police said Shelton was driving a silver 2001 Nissan Pathfinder.

According to the Missouri Sex Offender Registry Shelton was convicted in Fort Hood, Texas in 1989 for sodomizing a 6-year-old girl. In 1990, he convicted for kidnapping, sodomizing and raping a 12-year-old girl. He was also convicted in Texas that same year for attempting to kidnap a 13-year-old girl.

Most recently, Shelton was wanted by the Butler County Sheriff’s Department for abduction and assault.

The Poplar Bluff, Butler County Major Case Squad and federal authorities from Cape Girardeau and St. Louis investigated the case.

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POPLAR BLUFF, MO. -- A 5-year-old girl abducted in southeast Missouri was found safe hours later Wednesday, and the convicted sex offender suspected of taking her was arrested and charged.

The child’s mother discovered just before 7 a.m. that the girl was missing and contacted police.

Then, at 1:50 p.m., she was found with Jeffrey Dean Shelton, 45, during a traffic stop along a rural highway about 10 miles south of her hometown of Poplar Bluff, authorities said. Shelton did not try to flee and did not resist arrest, said Poplar Bluff Officer Darron Moore.

The Butler County prosecutor later charged Shelton, of Poplar Bluff, with four felonies – felonious restraint, child kidnapping, second-degree domestic assault and first-degree burglary. In addition to the kidnapping, he is accused of restraining his current or ex-girlfriend with duct tape after she found the child in Shelton’s home.

According to court documents, the girlfriend said she went to Shelton’s home around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday and saw the child sitting in a chair. When Shelton came into the front room, he allegedly said it was “now her fault that he was going to have to kill her and the child,” the documents said.

The woman told authorities she was beaten and bound, and beaten again outside the home after she tried to escape, court documents said. When neighbors noticed the commotion, the documents said, Shelton fled with the child in the vehicle.

The girl was taken to a hospital as a precaution.

“She was alive and well and appeared to be fine,” Moore said. .

Moore said the girl’s family does not know the man and it wasn’t clear what would have led him to the child, or how he was able to get her out of the home.

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Court documents release new details about child abduction

Posted: Oct 24, 2012 9:02 AM CDT
Updated: Oct 25, 2012 4:51 PM CDT
Heartland News

Shelton was arrested at the intersection of Hwy. 67 and Hwy. 160 (Source: search and rescue member)

Medical staff at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center say Abigail appears to be OK. (Source KMOV)

POPLAR BLUFF, MO (KFVS) -
A Poplar Bluff man accused of kidnapping a 5-year-old girl in Poplar Bluff Wednesday morning that sparked an Amber Alert waived his formal arraignment Thursday morning in court.

Jeffrey Dean Shelton, 45, is charged with burglary first degree, child kidnapping, domestic assault second degree and felonious restraint.

A preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 15. No bond has been set.

Jeffrey Shelton, a registered sex offender, was taken into custody at the corner of Hwy. 67 and Hwy. 158 by a Butler County Sheriff's deputy without incident after a traffic stop just before 2 p.m. Wednesday. This is just southwest of Poplar Bluff.

He is accused of kidnapping 5-year-old Abigail Elaine Bertholf.

According to the probable cause statement, Jeffery Shelton's girlfriend told police she went to his home at 5:30 a.m. Wednesday and saw a little girl sitting in a chair at Shelton's house that she knew was not supposed to be there.

Shelton came into the front room and told his girlfriend it was now her fault that he was going to have to kill her and the child, according to the probable cause statement.

That's when the girlfriend told police Shelton began beating her with his fist and tied her hands together with duct tape.

As she tried to escape, the girlfriend says Shelton caught her in the carport and began beating her again.

When that drew attention from the neighbors, Shelton stopped and ran into the home while the girlfriend ran to a neighbor's house, according to the probable cause statement.

That's when the girlfriend said Shelton grabbed the child and left in a silver Nissan Pathfinder.

Meanwhile, Abigail's mother called police around 6:50 a.m. reporting that her 5-year-old daughter was missing.

Abigail's mother told police she had last seen Abigail asleep on the couch wearing a pink night gown in the living room around 10 p.m. the night before. She evidently did not check on her 5 yr old sleeping on the couch? Why was she on the couch in the living room? Where was the mother for approx 8.5 hours? I smell a rat here. Would bet the mother knows this perv.

Officers saw that the living room window screen next to the door had been cut and the window was open.

At 7:30 a.m., police received a report about an assault from Shelton's girlfriend. She told police she knew the little girl was not supposed to be in his home at 5:30 a.m. The girlfriend told police while she was in Shelton's home, she asked the girl her name and she said "Abigail". She also heard Shelton calling the little girl "Abbie" and "Abigail," according to the probable cause. If he was calling her "Abbie", he knew her.

According to Deputy Chief Jeff Rolland, Shelton was arrested by officers of the Poplar Bluff Police Department, Butler County Sheriff's Office, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol at Cross Roads Convenience Store at the intersection of Hwy. 67 and Hwy. 158. at 1:45 p.m.

Abigail was taken to Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center to be evaluated. Medical staff say she appears to be doing okay.

According to Dep. Chief Rolland, Abigail is in good spirits and asked officers for chicken nuggets and a soda.

Neighbors say Shelton hung around the area a lot. One mother says she confronted Shelton about being too close to her children.

Local police say Shelton could possibly face more charges in connection with the sex assault of a different local minor.

Shelton was convicted of kidnapping and forcible sodomy involving a 12-year-old girl in Bell County, Texas in 1990, according to his sex offender registration paperwork.

Deputy Chief Rolland said during a press conference just before Abigail was found that whenever a child is missing, it's very critical. He says the more people that know the better chance to get her home.

"There are more eyes and ears with public, than with law enforcement," said Chief Whitely. He said "Shelton is a dangerous individual."

Rolland says because of the hard work and dedication of law enforcement, Abigail is back with her family and a sexual predator is off the street.

Chief Danny Whiteley would like to thank the following Law Enforcement Agencies: The men and women of the Poplar Bluff Police Department; Sheriff Mark Dobbs and the Butler County Sheriff's Office; The Missouri State Highway Patrol; FBI and the United States Marshal Service.

Chief Danny Whiteley would also like to thank the public for their enormous amount of support and assistance with this case.

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video at above link.

Who is the man who kidnapped Abigail Bertholf?

Posted: Oct 25, 2012 10:11 PM CDT
Updated: Oct 25, 2012 10:11 PM CDT
Christy Millweard
HEARTLAND NEWSMORE>>

POPLAR BLUFF, MO (KFVS) -
Neighbors said they can't believe this man lived right down the street from them.

Jeffrey Shelton is charged with Child Kidnapping, Burglary, Felonious Restraint, and Domestic Assault.

Shelton rented a home at 1003 Lela Street in Poplar Bluff. One woman said he's lived there for just about a year.

Neighbors said they would see Shelton come and go, but didn't know much about him.

Shelton is said to have held a few temporary jobs through an agency in Poplar Bluff. One man who worked with him said Shelton did his work, but kept to himself, so they didn't know him well.

Esther Hernandez is a mother of four, and just found out Thursday the suspect lived right down the road.

"I didn't even know that, to know that is scary right there cause my kids actually go over there and play with other little kids, I mean knowing that they walk, it's not that far, but still they can snatch them there in a second," said Hernandez.

She said she's always worried for her four kids.

"To know that somebody like that would actually take a kid, I mean that's heartbroken, why would they want to harm a little kid, especially 5 years old, I have a small one that's actually four," said Hernandez.

She said she's shocked no one in the area knew he was a sex offender.

"I'm thinking if we're going to have sex offenders living around the neighborhood, they should ask the neighborhood first before renting it so the neighbors can feel safer you know?" said Hernandez.

According to court documents, Shelton's home on Lela is where Shelton's girlfriend went Wednesday morning and noticed a child. That's when Shelton allegedly told her, he would have to kill her and the child. Papers say he then started beating the girlfriend, and tied her hands together with duct tape.

Police say the girlfriend escaped, ran to a neighbor's home, and that's when Shelton took Abigail and fled.

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Abducted 5-year-old talks to dispatcher during 911 call

Posted: Oct 26, 2012 9:20 AM CDT
Updated: Oct 26, 2012 9:27 AM CDT
Christy Hendricks - bio | email

Abducted 5-year-old talks to dispatcher during 911 call

For the first time, we are hearing audio from the 911 call Jeffrey Shelton made after police say he kidnapped Abigail Bertholf.

Investigators and Abigail's family continue to piece together the details of Wednesday's abduction.

Police said on Thursday they are concerned Shelton may have other victims, but they remain thankful Abigail is okay.

Jeffrey Dean Shelton, 45, called police to turn himself in on Wednesday afternoon and during that call, police asked to speak to Abigail.

Here is an excerpt of the call:

Dispatcher: Let me speak to the girl, please. Hi baby girl. What's your name darling?

Abigail: I want to go home.

Dispatcher: What's your name?

Shelton: You hear her?

Dispatcher: I hear her. I want to speak to her though. What's your name darling?

Abigail: I don't know where my house is. I want to go home.

That phone call led police to Shelton where he was arrested.

Shelton is charged with burglary first degree, child kidnapping, domestic assault second degree and felonious restraint.

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Police say suspect in Missouri abduction had child sex images

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ST. LOUIS -- Police investigating a man accused of abducting a 5-year-old Missouri girl say they have found images on his computer depicting sexual assaults against children.

Jeffrey Dean Shelton is charged with child kidnapping and other crimes for allegedly abducting the girl from her home Wednesday in Poplar Bluff. Shelton was arrested later that day. The child was with him.

Poplar Bluff Police Chief Danny Whiteley says investigators searched Shelton’s computer and found evidence that a girl around the age of 10 from the Poplar Bluff area had been victimized, along with other as-yet-unidentified children. Shelton has not been charged with a sex crime involving the abducted 5-year-old.

Police plan to seek additional charges but offered no timeline. Shelton’s attorney declined comment.

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You know, here's another example of the 'sex offender registry' being a bunch of sh!t. No matter what, here's a known pervert, child abductor, child rapist and child sodomizer, out free. WHY??? And we wonder why our children are not safe. Here's why. SMFH.

JMO

IMO its like saying "Okay, here we have a person already found to be a danger to children- he has kidnapped, and raped one known child, and stalked other children. We know he's done this before, but we are labeling him a "registered" sex offender so everyone, who happens to look it up, will know. Now he's going to be free to live in your neighborhood. But hey- you "know" who is he, don't you? So now you have him down your street, or across your town, and you are going to have to know where your child is every second she is not in school or some other place safe. But hey, don't be nervous, he's REGISTERED!!!"

What a bunch of . JMO

Apr 17, 2013

A convicted sex offender accused of kidnapping two southeast Missouri girls pleaded guilty to three counts of child porn Wednesday in federal court.

Jeffrey Dean Shelton, 46, of Poplar Bluff pleaded guilty to using a cell phone in an attempt to employ, use, persuade, induce, entice, and coerce a minor female to engage in sexually explicitly conduct.

The second count he also pleaded guilty to is employing, using, persuading, inducing, enticing, and coercing a minor female to engage in sexually explicit conduct which was capture on a cell phone.

The third count Shelton pleaded guilty to is possessing images of child pornography on a laptop computer.

He is accused of abducting and abusing a 10-year-old girl on October 20, 2012. The first charge stems from this incident.

The second two charges stem from October 24, 2012 when Shelton is accused of kidnapping a 5-year-old girl on October 24.

He appeared before US District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr. in Cape Girardeau.

Shelton spent more than 20 years in prison for kidnapping and sexually assaulting three children in Texas in the early 1990s.

The attempted production and production of child pornography carries a maximum penalty of life in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. The possession charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.

His sentencing is set for July 15 on the federal charges.


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Jul 15, 2013

POPLAR BLUFF, MO (KAIT) – A Region 8 man who pleaded guilty in April to federal felony charges of child pornography has been sentenced to over 100 years in prison.
Jeffery Shelton was sentenced to 120 years in prison on felony charges of attempted production of child porn, production of child porn, and possession of child porn.
Shelton received the maximum sentence of 120 years: 50 years each for the first two counts, and 20 years on the third count. The sentence is to be served consecutively.
Shelton also admitted on October 24, 2012, he left his home in Poplar Bluff with a 5-year-old child he had abducted several hours earlier and left his cell phone in the home.
Prosecutors say Shelton took sexually explicit videos of that little girl and another 10-year-old from Qulin, Missouri. Police found over 200 child porn images on his computer at the time of his arrest.  
Shelton threatened both children with serious bodily harm.
Shelton is a registered sex offender.  According to Missouri State Highway Patrol, Shelton was arrested in 1990 for the kidnapping, rape, and sodomy of a 12-year-old girl in Fort Hood, Texas.
Neighbors say Shelton hung around the area a lot, and one mother says she had to confront Shelton about being too close to her children in the past.


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I'm so glad he's locked up for good! Those poor children. Thanks for the update Nite!