Burlington Junction man charged with statutory rape

Russell D. Walker

A Burlington Junction man who Nodaway County Sheriff Darren White said has been on his department’s radar for “upwards of a year” was arrested Thursday and charged with two counts of statutory rape in the first degree for having sexual intercourse with a person younger than 14 years old.

At the time of his arrest, Russell D. Walker, 36, was free on bond from a March charge of endangering the welfare of a child, a second-degree misdemeanor.

In that case, Walker was arrested March 13 and posted $1,000 bond March 18. He entered a not-guilty plea April 14 and was scheduled to be back in court July 28.

However, his bond was revoked Thursday when he was taken into custody without incident at his Burlington Junction residence in relation to the new felony charges. Thursday’s charges are a completely separate case, White said.

White said his department had Walker “on our radar for a long time,” but had previously been unable to put together enough evidence to support any charges. White also said area schools and persons in the community “had some concerns” about Walker.

According to a release from White’s office, Walker is being held without bond in the Nodaway County Jail.

The first-degree felony charge of statutory rape carries a maximum sentence of life in prison or a term not less than five years.