A Broward Sheriff’s Office Fire Rescue lieutenant and his wife who are accused of locking a 12-year-old girl in a bedroom overnight for years have now been charged with aggravated child abuse and five additional charges, according to the Broward State Attorney’s Office.
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Joel Kohnert, 44, and his wife, Jennifer Kohnert, 45, were originally arrested in April on one count each of one count of child abuse without causing great bodily harm.
The new charge is a first-degree felony with a maximum prison term of 30 years. The earlier charge was a third-degree felony with a five-year maximum penalty. They are also charged with one count of child neglect without great bodily harm and four counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Broward Circuit Judge Frank Ledee allowed both their bonds to remain at $100,000 and ordered them fitted with ankle monitors. They are not allowed to have contact with the victim, their 12-year-old adopted daughter.
For two to three years, the bedroom door in their Coral Springs home was locked from the outside overnight and sometimes during the day, she told investigators. Her window also was locked, leaving no way for her to escape, according to the affidavit.
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The girl did not have access to a bathroom, the affidavit said, and she was forced to wash her clothes in a small bucket and to bathe outside in their backyard.
Investigators found that six other children in the home had proper furniture and toys and personal items in their clean bedrooms while the 12-year-old had an air mattress and little else in hers.
Calls to attorneys representing the Kohnerts were not returned as of late Monday afternoon.
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Rafael Olmeda can be reached at [email protected] or 954-356-4457.