Child Impostor Indicted For Sexual Crimes

Friday, January 26th 2007, 7:46 pm

By: News On 6

PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) _ A youthful-looking sex offender from Oklahoma who conned his way into middle schools around Arizona was indicted Friday on charges that included assault and child pornography.

Neil Havens Rodreick II, 29, who shaved and wore pancake makeup to masquerade as a seventh-grader, was charged with 15 criminal counts in all.

The charges include fraud, forgery, taking identity of another, possession of a forgery device and failing to register as a sex offender.

The Yavapai County Attorney's Office wouldn't comment about whether the child pornography charges involve children in Arizona or Oklahoma, where Rodreick was previously convicted of lewdly propositioning a 6-year-old boy in 1996.

Police said Rodreick had been sneaking into Arizona schools at least since 2005.

He enrolled at a charter school for a few weeks in 2005 in the community of Payson, about 65 miles from Phoenix. He then allegedly moved to schools in Surprise, Prescott Valley and Chino Valley, police said.

During that time, Rodreick convinced teachers, students and administrators that he was a 12-year-old boy named Casey. He mixed with classmates and did his homework.

Rodreick was caught last week when school officials at the Mingus Springs Charter School in Chino Valley questioned the authenticity of his birth certificate and other enrollment documents.

Police arrested later Rodreick with his friend, Brian J. Nellis, 34, and two older men who told police they brought Rodreick to Arizona from Oklahoma, thinking he was 12-years-old.

During a search of the Chino Valley home where Rodreick had been living, authorities said they found a video of Rodreick engaging in sex acts with an unidentified child.

The older men _ Lonnie Eugene Stiffler, 61, and Robert James Snow, 43 _ were indicted Friday on 14 criminal counts each that include charges of child pornography, attempted child molestation, attempted sexual conduct with a minor and forgery.

Nellis was indicted on 15 counts of child pornography, fraud, failure and forgery.

Snow and Nellis, who are both convicted sex offenders, also were charged with failing to register with authorities.

All four men are scheduled to be back in court on Feb. 26.

If convicted on all charges, each faces more than 100 years in prison.