Who is Melvin Emde? Missing Kayaker arrested after faking death to avoid child crime charges

41-year-old Melvin Emde, an alleged child r*pist, attempted to fake his death in an apparent kayaking accident on the Mississippi River. Finally, on September 17, 2023, Emde was arrested in Tift County, Georgia.

It has been mentioned that Melvin Emde allegedly attempted to fake his death to escape several charges, including r*pe of a child. Over a month back, Emde was reported missing and was nowhere to be found.

Authorities have not determined how the 41-year-old man evaded law enforcement agencies for so long when facing such grave charges.

Trigger warning: The article contains references to child r*pe. Readers' discretion is advised.

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Alleged child r*pist Melvin Emde faked his death to escape the severe charges but was arrested a few days back

The chain of events began when Melvin Emde was reported missing on August 7, 2023, by his son, Seth. It was later alleged that he possibly died in a kayaking accident on the Mississippi River. The case took a twisted turn when authorities came across an individual lately and eventually identified him as Emde.

St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office revealed that Seth told the cops that his father had fallen off a kayak and drowned in the river in Hahnville. After Emde was reported missing, authorities learned that he was facing serious charges, including indecent liberties with a child and statutory r*pe of a child by an adult in North Carolina. They also discovered that Melvin Emde had disappeared just a day before his court hearing, and this raised eyebrows.

St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg Champagne released a statement addressing the incident and said,

"We immediately became quite suspicious that this may have been a faked accidental drowning and death in order for Mr. Emde to escape charges in Brunswick County, North Carolina."

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Police investigated and discovered that the suspect had purchased burner cell phones from a Walmart

Champagne stated that they couldn't publicly reveal the suspicions as they thought someone might tip the suspect off. Eventually, authorities issued a news release to find information regarding the "missing" man. Dive teams, K-9 units, and drones were also deployed to find Emde.

Upon investigation, authorities found that the suspect had an ankle monitor and bought two burner phones from a Walmart in Boutte, Louisiana. Police attempted to track the location of the phones and discovered that they were briefly used in Oklahoma before being disposed of.

On September 17, Sunday, at about 3.30 am local time, officers tried pulling over a motorcyclist riding a bike with no license plate. He tried to flee the confrontation; however, he was later arrested. The man first gave away a fake name but then was identified as Melvin Emde. Champagne further said,

"Now it's time for Mr. Emde to face the music for his charges in North Carolina."

Over a month after Emde disappeared, he was found and taken into custody. Police believe the motive was to escape the serious charges he was facing in North Carolina.