Child rapist finally busted after several years of "unsubstantiated" complaints

Police: Rape suspect linked to several girls
Additional charges could involve as many as eight juvenile girls, Hamilton police say.

By Richard Wilson
Staff Writer
Friday, July 11, 2008

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Kenneth Lee AshcraftClick to enlarge
HAMILTON — A man accused of raping two juveniles over a 10-year period had relationships with other girls, including fathering an illegitimate child while cheating on his wife, who was 14 and he was in his 20s, according to police.
The now 41-year-old Kenneth Lee Ashcraft of New Miami faces for now three counts of rape and three counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. The charges stem from crimes that allegedly occurred between 1989 and 1997 involving two female victims who were ages 11 and 12 when Ashcraft allegedly had sexual contact with them, according to records.
But Ashcraft has been interviewed by Hamilton police at least three times in the past. Additional charges may come that involve as many as eight female juvenile victims, the youngest age 4, said Hamilton police Detective Mark Hayes.
Police are investigating relationships that Ashcraft had with numerous female juveniles dating back to 1988, when he married a 14-year-old girl in Kentucky, Hayes said.
The marriage lasted about six months, according to court records. Ashcraft allegedly committed adultery and impregnated a 13-year-old girl, Hayes said. The girl bore a son, who is now 17.
Numerous complaints against Ashcroft of physical and sexual abuse are on file with Butler County Children Services dating back to the late 1980s, said agency director Michael Fox.
One file contains a complaint of sexual abuse involving Ashcraft's adopted daughter, who was removed from his custody, Fox said.
Each complaint, Fox said, was investigated by children services and police; with the majority unsubstantiated.
"This guy has spent a good part of his life molesting little children and it is an absolute shame that he wasn't nailed before this," Fox said.
Ashcraft is being held in the Butler County Jail on a $225,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear Wednesday, July 16, in Hamilton Municipal Court for a preliminary hearing.