CHARLESTON, W.Va.-- Police called the list of allegations against a Charleston man accused of physically and sexually abusing three young children in his care "disturbing."
William Dale Clere, 33, of Roosevelt Avenue in Kanawha City was arrested Tuesday afternoon and charged with two counts of sexual abuse by a parent or guardian, two counts of child abuse resulting in injury and one count of indecent exposure.
The victims, a female relative and Clere's daughter and stepson, told police Clere abused them on multiple occasions, according to a complaint filed in Kanawha Magistrate Court.
Clere's 10-year-old daughter told police Clere once pushed her into traffic on MacCorkle Avenue while they were walking to Big Lots. A vehicle almost struck the girl and the driver stopped to confront Clere but left after Clere threatened him with a knife.
She said Clere has angrily thrown her against the wall over things like video games. On one occasion, he pulled a knife on the family and threatened to hurt them all, including himself, according to the complaint.
She told the detective Clere has on multiple occasions thrown her against the wall in anger over things like video games and that he once pulled a knife on the family threatening to hurt them all including himself.
She said Clere also told her and her 6-year-old stepbrother to eat feces out of the toilet but that her mother, his wife, stopped them. The victim also said Clere forced her to watch him have sex with her mother.
The boy told police Clere threw a full soda can at him, striking him in the face and bruising his eye, the complaint said. School officials were apparently told the injury happened in a fight with another child.
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He said on one occasion he had been standing in the living room of their Kanawha City apartment when Clere grabbed his genitals and "twisted as hard as he could," the complaint said. The boy said he screamed and cried in pain and later passed blood in his urine. Clere, he said, put a bandage on his genitals.
The female relative told detectives Clere sexually abused her and at one time exposed himself to her in his home over the summer. The girl, 15, said Clere grabbed her breasts and tried to touch her genitals through her clothing. He stopped when her mother came into the room, and then said he would turn himself into police.
She said Clere exposed himself to her once in his daughter's bedroom and tried to get her to touch him but left the room when she refused. Two weeks later she said he made her touch him through his clothing despite her resistance.
Eggleton said charges had not been brought against Clere's wife but that detectives still were investigating.
"These allegations are disturbing," said Sgt. Bobby Eggleton, assistant chief of detectives. "You would think a mother would know what is going on in her own house but we're going to look into that."
