TUCSON — A 26-year-old man will spend the next 27 years behind bars after the U.S. Attorney’s Office secured a conviction for transportation of a Graham County minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
In 2022, Graham County Sheriff’s Office discovered information which led to the identity of Timothy M. Schultheis as the suspect in the disappearance of then 12-year-old Betty Taylor, of Safford.
Schultheis was using Facebook to communicate with Taylor and detail his plans for them both to travel together to South Carolina.
GCSO, working with the FBI out of Sierra Vista and local law enforcement, was able to apprehend Schultheis in Hilton Head, S.C., and Taylor was safely recovered.
Schultheis had been previously arrested and released by South Carolina authorities for similar conduct involving a different 12-year-old, and was wearing an ankle monitor at the time of his offense in the Taylor case. The plea agreement in the Taylor case required that Schultheis plead guilty to the South Carolina charges of Criminal Sexual Conduct with a Minor and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor.
“Our efforts to protect the public start with safeguarding our youth from predators on social media” said United States Attorney Gary Restaino. “Defendant will have a long time in custody to reflect on his crimes, and upon release decades from now, his supervised release conditions will restrict his use of smart phones and encryption technology to further protect the community.”
