Staff Report

MENTONE —  A Mentone man has been arrested after he allegedly made comments to young women in the parking lot of a business, which led to police to discover he had failed to update his address on the sex offender registry. 

Donald Heeter

Donald Lee Heeter, 57, 3692 S. SR 25, Mentone, is charged with failure to register, a level 6 felony.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, on March 14, a Warsaw Police officer responded to a complaint of a man catcalling young female customers and employees in the parking lot of a business.

The man was reportedly sitting in a Ford F-150.

Upon the officer’s arrival at the parking lot, the vehicle was found and a BMV inquiry was completed on the vehicle. A man then exited the business and approached the vehicle. At that point, the officer made contact with Heeter, who denied any inappropriate interactions with women in the parking lot. 

The officer then learned Heeter’s driver’s license was suspended and that he was a registered sex offender in the State of Indiana.

The Indiana Sex Offender Registry showed an address that was updated on April 6, 2020. The Indiana BMV return noted an updated address on Jan. 9, with a Mentone address.

Heeter admitted that he just recently moved to 3692 S. SR 25, Mentone, but had not been able to make it to the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office to update the sex offender registry due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also admitted that he had moved to Warsaw prior to moving to Mentone, which was not updated on the sex offender registry at that time. 

The Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office has been open and available for sex offenders to register despite the pandemic. Heeter did not notify KCSO of changes in his residential address from his previous address to the Mentone address within 72 hours of such change as required by IC 11-8-8-8 even though he updated the Indiana BMV of the Mentone address change on Jan. 9.

Heeter was booked at the Kosciusko County Jail on March 14 on a $5,250 surety and cash bond.