"I thought she was 18..."

By Jackie Lukas

It seems as if the Deputy Commissioner of Finance for the Town of North Hempstead has gotten himself into a little trouble with the law. 46 year old Owen Sinclair was arrested and charged with rape - for allegedly having sex with a 16 year old girl.   Sinclair says the teen told him she was 18 years old. She even lied to Nassau police about her age after she was caught - according to cops. But police say tough luck! It doesn't make any difference if Sinclair knew or didn't know she was sixteen. It was his responsibility to be vigilant and take precautions.

Ok, so here's how police say it happened. Sinclair, who's from Oceanside, allegedly met this girl over the Internet. Craigslist ring a bell? They apparently chatted online for a couple months before agreeing to meet. Police say the teen trekked all the way from Brooklyn - and met Sinclair to have sex at the Capri Lynbrook Motor Inn on two separate occasions. Then on December 30th - the pair allegedly drove to the Plantation Motel in North Long Beach. But according to cops - they turned right back around after they saw a cop car sitting in the parking lot. That officer became suspicious and followed the two - and eventually pulled them over after they allegedly exceeded the speed limit. After being questioned, police say the truth eventually came out.

Sinclair lives with his Mom in Oceanside. His neighbors told me they were surprised to hear he was arrested. They describe him as a "loner". Cops say that this is a message to parents. Parents need to know what their children are doing online - and also know where they are! This girl was taking the train from Brooklyn into Nassau County! But cops also say in this case both parties knew what they were doing - and met up with the intention to have sex. It was Sinclair's responsibility to know whether or not she was of age.  

As far as Sinclair's job with the Town of North Hempstead, a spokesperson told me that he's fired.

Comments

[Franky Freeport]

Wow, there are alot of wack jobs out there... Bottom line is this.. THE LAW IS THE LAW.. If you are 46 yrs old and have the wonderful opportunity to date someone 20 yrs younger, double check, triple check that the girl is at least of legal age.. Rule of thumb for any older guy out there looking to date girls in their teens should at least be that if she seems 10-15 yrs younger, make sure its legal.. And just asking is not enough.. GET REAL PROOF..The responsibilty is on you..You will be the one going to jail and having your face posted on the NEWS.. And if you can't handle that responsiblity then date someone your own age.. And if the girl is say, 16 and only a few months from legal age.. Save her cell number and wait the few months.. If the girl is interested in you when you are 20 YEARS OLDER.. Then I'm sure a few more months older won't make a bit of difference to her..But, those few months could mean possible jail time for you.. This guy knew exactly what he was doing.. Why did he turn around when he saw the cop in the parking lot...In fact, it was so obvious that something wasn't right that the cop followed this guy, then eventually pulled him over.. And where were this girl's parents.. I think they should be charged too for child neglect.. Great reporting Jackie.. Keep it up.. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Please let 2009 be much much better for us all!!

[Mr. Cadillac]

Keep in mind, if your a 38 year old single man who is not married, and you don't have a girlfriend...imagine how you feel by the end of the 5th month of getting no action and having to wake up with hard ons everyday...your brain may just start to play tricks on you and you just may make bad choice...maybe the girl was becoming so bored with being 16 and having to rely on IPOD's, the Walt Whitman Mall, and whoever is driving for her good time, she maybe wanted a change of the norm....16 year old girls get horny too...maybe after screwing 1/2 her high school she realized most 16 year old boys are sexually lacking and decided she wanted to do it with someone who has experience...I think we should be focused on the fact that on Long Island any jackass with $3,900 in there pocket can rent the house next door and be your neighbor tomorrow or the fact that too many people continue to pay a premium to live on an Island that only has nice weather 6 months a year and when you have had enough and are ready to leave for good people want to give you $.65 on the dollar what you house is really worth...do we really care that some slut got banged out 24 months before she was suppost to...don't think she will need therapy to fix this one...

There lucky Elizabeth Hashagen is back on TV...one more week and I was gonna go bring back the boxes to the Cable store and cancel cable and the $126 a month they charge me...

[John]

"Parents need to know what their children are doing online - and also know where they are!"

...Do you mean the girl's parents or Sinclair's...?

While I don't want to make light of an adult possibly manipulating a child, I have to admit that I don't like the trend of demonizing the Internet. Would it help if Sinclair met her through personal ads? At a nightclub? At the library? What about an online game instead of shady old Craig's List?

I'm perhaps generalizing unfairly, here, but maybe parents should start actually caring about their kids instead of putting them under surveillance. They could, maybe, teach them to interact with adults so that anybody older isn't automatically considered an authority figure. And they might not crave adult companionship if there are already actual, respectable adults in their lives.

As to the guy who thinks that ignorance IS an excuse for breaking the law...well, no. You're responsible for following the law at all times. You don't get to "disagree," unless you're planning on changing the legal system.

While I do wish that the law accounted for physical and emotional maturity instead of arbitrary ages for "adulthood" (driving, for example), I do see that it'd be too complicated to implement. So if you have trouble distinguishing ages, maybe you want to, say, spend your time with older women where their legal rights are a bit clearer.

[solomon a]

sorry i disagree. so if i meet a girl i have to ask for id? get real. she was a willing participant/