September 14, 2020 at 2:08 p.m.
Man facing trial in ICAC case charged with bail jumping
Man facing trial in ICAC case charged with bail jumping
Alexander L. Valentine was first arrested in April 2019, as part of an Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) investigation, after exchanging social media and text messages with a Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation special agent who was pretending to be a teen girl.
Valentine is alleged to have proposed a meeting with the "girl" for purposes of having sexual contact, agreeing to travel to Rhinelander to meet with her.
Instead, he was met by members of the Oneida County Sheriff's Department, who took him into custody.
He made his initial appearance April 2, 2019 before Oneida County Circuit Judge Michael Bloom at which time bond was set at $10,000 cash. The amount was later lowered to $3,500, according to court records.
As a condition of bond, Valentine is not to possess any device capable of connecting to the internet, except for as part of his employment.
According to the new criminal complaint, in late July the district attorney's office received information that Valentine was using the dating app Tinder and Facebook in violation of the terms of his bond.
A source sent the special agent investigating Valentine's case screenshots of several messages she and another woman received from Valentine, the complaint states.
Valentine was arrested Sept. 8 and made his initial appearance on the bail jumping charge the next day.
District attorney Michael Schiek asked Bloom to set a cash bond on the new charge while defense attorney Elizabeth Svehlek argued for a high signature bond or modest cash bond.
Svehlek noted that her client has been present for court appearances.
Given the conditions of bond, Bloom said he was concerned by allegations Valentine has been using social media and a dating application "specifically for the purpose of meeting other individuals" and "looking for some kind of companionship."
"In the backdrop of the underlying case, and the looming jury trial, etc., the fact that what is alleged to have gone on may in fact had gone on, is witheringly troublesome in terms of the court's ability to feel confident that the defendant is able to proceed with his obligations under the conditions of his bond," Bloom said.
He then set a $25,000 cash bond and scheduled a preliminary hearing on the new charge for Sept. 16.
Valentine's trial on the ICAC charges is set for Sept. 18.
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