Babysitter accused of sexual assault pleads guilty to amended charge

March 02--The Ames man who was set to go to trial later this month for allegedly sexually abusing a girl he was babysitting in 2015 has pleaded guilty to an amended charge, according to Story County Attorney Jessica Reynolds.

Michael Robert Stoecker, 28, pleaded guilty to lascivious acts with a mine, a class C felony, after originally being charged with second-degree sexual abuse.

Stoecker was arrested after he turned himself in at Story County Jail in early August 2016. His original trial was set for Nov. 1, but has been rescheduled four times before he pleaded guilty Monday.

Ames Police Cmdr. Jason Tuttle said police originally took a report on the incident on Feb. 11, 2015. The girl was taken to Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines for examination and a sexual assault kit was collected.

Tuttle said test results came back from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation in November 2015, which matched some DNA collected with Stoecker's, who was already in the DNA system for previous offenses.

In early 2016, Tuttle said Ames police detectives wanted to collect a new sample from Stoecker and tried for months to get him to cooperate. Tuttle said they were finally able to obtain a warrant, and on June 17, with the assistance of the Ames Police Department'sEmergency Response Team, investigators received a sample from Stoecker.

Results of the new tests came back positive in late July. Stoecker turned himself in at the jail Aug. 6, and was arrested.

According to Reynolds, the state is suggesting that Stoecker receive a 10-year suspended prison sentence, followed by five years probation, a lifetime special sentence, and be placed on the sex-offender registry.

Stoecker has a sentencing date set for March 20, and remains held in Story County Jail on $100,000 bond.

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