Ann Arbor man pleads not guilty to traveling to Ohio to have sex with underage girls in locked car
An Ann Arbor pianist has pleaded not guilty to charges that he traveled to Ohio to force two underage girls to perform sex acts on him in a parking garage, federal court documents show.
David Jeremy Zobel, 32, remains jailed on three counts of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor and two counts of coercion and enticement of a minor.
Zobel, who was the music director at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Ypsilanti and a pianist with the Men’s Glee Club at the University of Michigan, was arrested on a federal criminal complaint in June.
Zobel entered the plea during a recent arraignment in federal court in Dayton after being indicted by a federal grand jury in late August.
If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
Zobel is accused of driving the girls, ages 12 and 13, from Xenia to a parking garage about 170 miles away in Toledo, then locking the car’s doors, an FBI affidavit says.
Zobel wouldn’t let the girls out until each performed a sex act on him and let him photograph their breasts, the affidavit says.
He met the 13-year-old on the popular social networking Web site MySpace.com, then visited her at her Xenia home in November 2008, documents say.
According to the affidavit, the girl told investigators Zobel went into her bedroom and forced her to perform a sex act.
Xenia police searched the 13-year-old’s phone with her consent and recovered about 41 text messages sent from Zobel’s phone June 2 between 1 a.m. and 12:16 p.m., the affidavit says.
The girl told Zobel her friend ran away, and the two needed a place to stay outside Ohio, documents say.
“…we both have warrants,” she texted, according to the affidavit.
Zobel asked the girl about her friend and whether she was cute. The girl wrote her friend was 14 and “yes she is cute,” the affidavit says.
“Maybe I should drive down tomorrow and get you 2 a hotel room…Hmmmm,” read a text from Zobel’s phone about 1:40 a.m., documents say.
A later text read, “And you guys will do ANYTHING I want?;),” the affidavit says.
FBI agents searched Zobel’s apartment on North Main Street in Ann Arbor on June 9 after he told them he began communicating with the 13-year-old in November 2008 in sex chat rooms and by text, the affidavit says.
He told agents the girl told him she was 16, records show. Zobel said he offered to pick up the girls in Xenia after the older one said she and her friend had run away, documents say.
“Zobel said he had no intention of engaging in sexual acts with the girls; he simply wanted to help them out,” the affidavit says. “Zobel also stated he is also glad the standard of proof in a criminal trial is beyond a reasonable doubt because there is no evidence he engaged in sexual acts with the girls.”
Zobel admitted to driving the girls from Xenia to Toledo, the affidavit says, but said he did not want to drive into Michigan because he would be crossing state lines with underage girls.
Zobel told investigators “he did not engage in sexual contact with either minor nor take any photographs of them,” the affidavit says.
When investigators found a camera in his apartment and asked if he had others, he said he didn’t, documents say. His wife then told agents there was a camera upstairs, the affidavit says.
Zobel’s wife told investigators Zobel originally told her on June 2 he traveled to Ohio to give a friend a ride, documents say. Zobel later told his wife his correspondence with the girls was about relationship issues, and he believed the girls were each 13 years old, the affidavit says.
Agents seized a laptop, two digital cameras and an iPhone; they discovered photographs of the girls lifting their shirts, the affidavit says.
Zobel is scheduled to go on trial this fall.
Lee Higgins covers crime and courts for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at leehiggins@annarbor.com or 734-623-2527.
Comments
dawhood
Tue, Sep 22, 2009 : 7:51 p.m.
This seems to be the trend now. This guy has issues and he should be punished. Why ply your trade on children? We in sociaty should press for tougher legislation to insure that people that do this type of crime arent allowed to get off lightly. It seems to that plea bargins for some crimes should not be an option.
DanielF
Tue, Sep 22, 2009 : 2:44 p.m.
Michael Christie- so, What do you want us to say, in response to this story? Do you want us to write lurid fantasies of how we wouldnlike to draw and quarter this man? I made my initial comment, because I knew the guy as a very accomplished pianist. Actually considered taking lessons with him, to get ready to apply to the U-M School of Music. That is why I think this is such a crazy story.
Michael Christie
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 5:50 p.m.
A sicko is trying to kidnap and sexually assault teens and the best comment is "good heavens" "what a crazy story". If he does go to jail, the "system" has a way with this type of sicko.
bunnyabbot
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 12:29 p.m.
Mac, I know several people who had talks with their daughters regarding the internet, child predators, touching wayward pianists, etc. The monitored their daughters online activity. The computer was in the family room not far from the dining room table and within the circle of family activities. All three sets of parents found out their girls (ages 12-15) still had contact with complete strangers, lied about being older, had sexual conversations with friends in emails and instant messages and one, the 12 year old had exchanged a picture of her flat chest to who knows who that said he (she thought 15 year old boy) liked them flat. All to their horror. Needless to say they all have had thier internet access complete taken away unless their mom or dad is sitting right next to them so they can do school work. They have basic cellphones that will only receive calls from people on thier contact list, which have to be entered by their parents using a code. They can only call contacts or 911. parents need to not only discuss internet predators they need to also discuss with them self respect and sexual images that they see plastered everywhere and on tv. From revealing clothing to commonly used terms like "hooking up" "F-buddy" etc. While I am in no way a prude as an adult female I totally see how these things (the internet, tv and music etc) have created a culture where females (and people) have been devalued. It's a use and use and throw away society. Use people and move on to another person, (like a bunch of sociopaths)> I'm all for equality in the work place and with respect and all those things, but the "womans" movement and the "sexual revolution" might have done more harm than good. Woman have a right to have choices, but I am sure there were a lot of peeved angry woman living in some of those hippie communes having open relationships with men that were just happy as a clam to not be tied down. theres something to be said for being able to care for your child, stay home with them, raise a healthy well rounded self respecting person while your husband provides for you and doesn't mind taking out the trash. And that example setting the tone for how a daughter should expect to be treated well and not like a piece of meat.
Macabre Sunset
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 11:48 a.m.
Parents should instruct their daughters never to touch a wayward pianist without supervision. Quips aside, it is troubling what kids can and will get into on the internet if you're not watching. Perhaps there's a market for cheaper and more user-friendly monitoring software. Parents need to be educated here.
bunnyabbot
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 11:11 a.m.
I feel bad for his wife. Going about your life and then wham! the rug pulled out from under you...I know how that feels. :(
djm12652
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 10:35 a.m.
What a sick individual...he's glad our judicial system works the way it works? No proof he had any sex with the victims...what a load of crap...this guy needs to man up and take his punishment
Skeet
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 7:44 a.m.
We need To Catch a Predator out here.
DanielF
Mon, Sep 21, 2009 : 7:18 a.m.
Good heavens!!!! what a crazy story.