Sex Offender Arrested After Mom Saw Him Approach Her 11-Year-Old Daughter

A 71-year-old man in Georgia accused of trying to lure an 11-year-old child into his car has been arrested.

William Howard, of Roswell, was arrested Tuesday on charges of enticing a child for indecent purposes, Roswell Police Department confirmed in a statement Friday.

On Feb. 16, a mother reported witnessing Howard approach her 11-year-old daughter from his car as the child got off the school bus, Roswell police said. The names of the mother and daughter were not disclosed.

The girl said Howard offered to give her a ride to her nearby home within their mutual residential neighborhood of Warm Springs Cir in Roswell despite having no "pre-existing relationship," according to police.

After witnessing the encounter, the victim's mother researched the sex offender registry and recognized Howard, who is a registered sex offender through Florida after being convicted in 2011 of lewd or lascivious molestation of a victim 12-15 years old.

The mother immediately reported her daughter's encounter with Howard to Roswell police.

After investigating the incident and past contacts between the victim and the suspect, Howard was taken into custody just outside his home without incident and transported to the Fulton County Jail, where he was booked on one count of enticing a child for indecent purposes.

“The quick thinking and decisive action of this parent is a model for all of us, and demonstrates well the necessary partnership between our community and the police in protecting our most vulnerable population: our children,” Roswell Police Chief James Conroy said.

In related news, a 49-year-old convicted sex offender was arrested in Springdale, Arkansas, Thursday for knowingly entering public school campuses.

Dr. Mark Edward Oesterle, of Fayetteville, went to a pair of Springdale public school campuses in February, KNWA reported. This was a class D felony due to his sex offender status.

Oesterle entered the Central Junior High School campus on 8th grade Parent’s Night on Feb. 9. Police obtained surveillance footage of the incident, which showed the suspect giving an unidentified "petite blonde female" a hug, court documents said.

The second incident occurred on Feb. 12 at Har-Ber High School while an ACT test was being administered.

An unnamed teacher, unaware of Oesterle's sex offender status, allowed him to escort a student to a testing room. Investigators obtained footage of this as well and saw Oesterle begin speaking to a teacher serving as a proctor during the test.

An arrest warrant for Oesterle was issued Wednesday. He was booked into the Washington County Jail and released on a $3,500 bond.

Last year, Oesterle pleaded guilty to one charge after sexually assaulting two minor teen girls at the school where he worked. He was sentenced to six years probation, fined $1,000 and ordered to register as a level 3 sex offender.