APPLICATION FOR OHIO STATE HIGHWAY PATROL RESULTS IN RAPE ARREST

Wooster man accused of raping disabled girl

By Jack Rooney

Akron Beacon Journal
March 5, 2019

WOOSTER, Ohio — A Wooster man faces four felony charges including rape after police say he assaulted a developmentally disabled girl about 10 years ago — allegations that came to light when he applied for a job with the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

Nathan Hoyle, 28, of the 2500 block of Montclair Avenue, is charged with one count of rape, a first-degree felony, two counts of sexual battery, a third-degree felony, and one count of gross sexual imposition, a fourth-degree felony. According to the indictment, filed Jan. 28 in the Wayne County Common Pleas Court, the alleged incidents took place between January 2008 and July 2009, when Hoyle was 17 and 18 and the girl was 13 and 14.

Hoyle last Wednesday entered a written plea of not guilty. He is free on a personal recognizance bond with continuous GPS monitoring, court records show.

Wooster police began investigating Hoyle on Nov. 6, 2017 after the patrol contacted the department, Assistant Chief Scott Rotolo said Monday. The patrol informed Wooster police that Hoyle, who was applying for a job as a trooper, said during a background investigation that he had sexually assaulted a developmentally disabled girl in 2009, Rotolo said.

Detectives began investigating, and eventually spoke to Hoyle, Rotolo said.

“Mr. Hoyle indicated he had been a friend of the family and admitted to engaging in sexual conduct with the victim,” Rotolo said in an email. “He was also fully aware at the time of the offense that the victim was a juvenile and is mentally disabled.”

Patrol spokesoman Lt. Craig Cvetan said Hoyle submitted an application to become a trooper in February 2017. Hoyle was “permanently disqualified” Jan. 8, 2018, following a polygraph exam, he said.

A polygraph exam is a standard part of the application process to become a trooper, Cvetan said. If the patrol uncovers any criminal allegations or admissions during that process, that information is handed over to local law enforcement, Cvetan added.

Neither Hoyle nor his attorney, John Johnson Jr., responded to requests for comment Monday afternoon.