POPLAR BLUFF_ A 65-year-old man who police say faked his own death to avoid prosecution has been found guilty of three counts of statutory rape.
A sentencing date for Charles Rothman of Scott City has not been set. He was convicted on Wednesday. Authorities say he engaged in sex acts with a 13-year-old girl in 2007.
Authorities said Rothman apparently tried to fake his death by setting his fishing boat adrift in a body of water known as the Diversion Channel. Police believe someone had tipped Rothman that he was under investigation in the sexual abuse case.
Authorities suspected he wasn't really dead and began tracking his movements through bank accounts and cell phone records. He was arrested in Poplar Bluff in May 2007.