An Owensboro man charged with multiple counts of child sex abuse has been arrested in Belize after fleeing the area in early 2019.
According to police reports, a 12-year-old juvenile reported being sexually abused by Lad Duane Ottofy, 60, of the 2900 block of Christie Place. Further investigation by Owensboro Police Department led to the discovery of multiple juvenile victims.
OPD charged Ottofy with five counts of first-degree sexual assault, one count of second-degree rape and one count of second-degree sodomy on Dec. 13, 2018.
Court documents show that Ottofy’s brother posted a $25,000 cash bond for his brother’s release on Jan. 11, 2019. But after Ottofy failed to appear for a March 22 court date, the bond was revoked.
A protective order summons was issued for Ottofy on Feb. 18 and a domestic violence summons was issued on Feb. 27, neither for which he appeared in court. On March 5, Ottofy’s brother told Daviess District Court that he was “hiding in Belize due to pending sex abuse charges,” court documents said.
A civil summons was issued on May 22, which was returned as unserved stating Ottofy “moved back to Belize and will not be returning.” At least 14 failure to appear orders were issued from February to August 2019.
Commonwealth Attorney Bruce Kuegel confirmed to Owensboro Times that Ottofy was arrested in Belize by local authorities with the assistance of the U.S. Marshall’s Office. On Friday afternoon, Kuegel could not confirm if Ottofy had been returned to the U.S., citing security issues.
Kuegel confirmed Ottofy would be returned to Daviess County to face the charges against him.
