SEBASTIAN — A convicted sex offender living in Sebastian has been arrested after the Sheriff’s Office says he failed to register his address.
Authorities arrested Wayne Ohler, 47, of the 7800 block of 129th Court, earlier this month, first for an unrelated warrant for failing to pay child support, and later for failing to register as a sex offender. His residence, according to the Sheriff’s Office, is less than 1,000 feet from the Roseland Ballfields and about 2,200 feet from Roseland Christian Preschool.
When Ohler was booked into the Indian River County Jail on Dec. 1, a deputy discovered Ohler’s sex offender status.
Ohler’s criminal history shows he is most recently registered as a sexual offender in Maury County, Tenn., according to the arrest information.
During the booking process, Ohler gave a home address of 129th Court, Sebastian, but told the deputy – when asked – that he did not know he had to register the address due to his status.
The Sheriff’s Office contacted the Maury County Sheriffs Office in Tennessee, which informed local officials that Ohler is required to report his address per the Tennessee State Statutes.
A sergeant with the Tennessee agency told local deputies that Ohler’s original charge was Corruption of
a Minor and he was convicted of this charge in 1997.
When the Maury County Sheriff’s Office learned that Ohler was now residing in Indian River County, authorities there said that they would seek a warrant for Ohler but would not extradite him back to Tennessee, according to the arrest report.
Ohler faces a felony charge of failing to register as a sex offender and a misdemeanor charge of violating sex offender residency requirements, his arrest report states.
He is being held at the county jail in lieu of $5,500 bail.