3 UNNAMED GIRLS - 10, 11, and 15 yo (2011-2013) - Charged: Stepfather and mother, Fernando and Sophia Richter - Tucson, AZ

Tucson Police: Parents of 3 girls face kidnapping, abuse charges


Posted: Nov 26, 2013 6:55 PM EST Updated: Dec 10, 2013 6:55 PM EST
By Som Lisaius


 

Police responded to the residence in the 2800 block of North Estrella Avenue for a 911 report of domestic violence with a knife.

 

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) -

Two people face kidnapping and abuse charges after three girls told police they had been imprisoned by their parents in their midtown home for possibly up to two years.

Police say the girls' stepfather, 34-year-old Fernando Richter, and mother, 32-year-old Sophia Richter were booked into Pima County Jail on three charges each of kidnapping, child abuse/emotional abuse, and child abuse/physical abuse. Fernando Richter was also charged with one count of sexual abuse with a person under 15 years of age, according to police.

According to TPD Capt. Mike Gillooly, the girls were siblings, aged 12, 13, and 17.

Gillooly said the children have been removed from the home.

Gillooly said the two younger girls escaped to a neighbor's house and said their stepfather allegedly had kicked in their bedroom door and threatened them with a knife.

Patrol officers responded to the residence in the 2800 block of North Estrella Avenue, near East Glenn Street and North Stone Avenue, at about 4 a.m. after receiving a 911 report of a domestic fight involving a knife, Gillooly said.

Police found the third girl in one of the home's bedrooms. According to police, all the girls were malnourished and extremely dirty and they said they hadn't bathed in four to six months.

The girls allege that they were only fed once a day.

Gillooly said the girls were found in filthy living conditions and the younger girls had been kept separate from the 17-year-old. He said they told police the younger girls hadn't seen their older sister in two years.

The neighbor who called police described the girls as small and unkempt. She said they were hysterical and visibly shaking. The neighbor did not want to be identified.

Neighbors said they were unaware that any children lived in the house.

The investigation is in its initial stages.

"I can assure you we're doing everything we can to make sure these kids are kept safe," Gillooly said.


http://www.kpho.com/story/24078408/tucson-police-3-girls-imprisoned-for-2-years

Couple in Tucson child imprisonment case charged in 2nd county

Posted: Jan 31, 2014 12:33 PM EST Updated: Jan 31, 2014 1:03 PM EST
By Steve Stout

 


Fernando, left, and Sophia Richter. (Source: Tucson Police Department)
TUCSON, AZ (CBS5) -

The Pinal County Attorney has charged a southern Arizona couple, accused of imprisoning the woman's three daughters inside their Tucson home, with numerous felonies, including child abuse, kidnapping, aggravated assault and sexual abuse while they lived in Pinal County.


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TUCSON CHILD ABUSE

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Fernando, 34, and Sophia Richter, 32, are suspected of having abused the girls from March 15, 2011, until Sept. 1, while the family lived in Catalina.
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They have already been charged in Pima County after the girls ages 12, 13, and 17, were found locked in their rooms from September through November. Two of the girls escaped through a window and asked neighbors for help, according to Tucson police.
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Fernando Richter, the children's stepfather, was charged with six counts of child abuse, three counts of kidnapping, one count of aggravated assault, one count of sexual abuse of a child younger than 15, one count of child molestation and three counts of child abuse.
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The girls' mother was charged with six counts of child abuse and three counts of kidnapping.
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The couple were arraigned in Pinal County Superior Court on Friday morning.
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If convicted as charged, Fernando Richter could face between 33 and 128 1/4 years in prison, according to Pinal County Attorney Lando Voyles.
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The indictments claim Fernando Richter struck one of the girls, causing a bloody nose, and struck them with a metal spoon and stick.
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Sophia Richter could face from 23 to 83 years, Voyles said.

http://www.kpho.com/story/24601480/couple-in-tucson-child-imprisonment-case-charged-in-2nd-county

Fernando Richter back in Superior Court


Posted: Jan 28, 2014 9:39 AM EST Updated: Jan 31, 2014 12:27 PM EST By Maria Hechanova

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) -.


A man accused of holding three Tucson girls captive returned to court Tuesday on a different charge.


Fernando Richter attended a hearing connected to his alleged assault on a corrections officer shortly after his arrest in December.
Richter and his wife, Sophia, are in the Pima County Jail on multiple charges of child abuse and kidnapping.

They also face similar charges in Pinal County.

Tucson Police say the couple kept Sophia's three daughters in dungeon-like isolation and confinement for up to two years.

Two of the girls managed to escape the family's midtown home just before Thanksgiving and they got help from a neighbor.

Investigators say the Richters had only lived in that home since last August.

Prosecutors say the majority of the crimes committed happened at a home in Pinal County where the family spent the past two years.

Pinal County court officials say the new case against the Richters has been sealed, but online documents indicate the Richters are expected to answer to those charges in Pinal County on Thursday morning at 9 a.m.


http://www.kpho.com/story/24562785/fernando-richter-expected-back-in-superior-court