A Stonecrester with a lifetime mandate to register as a sex offender is behind bars in the Marion County Jail after failing to do so.
Scott John Akerblom, 54, who lives at 17738 SE 114th Ct., was convicted in November 1983 in Plymouth County, Mass., in the rape of a child with the use of force. The conviction carries a lifetime stipulation that Akerblom must register as a sex offender wherever he lives – a condition he apparently didn’t follow when relocating to the Stonecrest home that is owned by a family trust.
Records show that Akerblom completed a registration form in Massachusetts on Christmas Day in 2015 stating that his permanent address was at 24 Logan St., Apt. 415 in New Bedford. During that registration, records show that Akerblom signed a form stating that he understood he would have 10 days to register as a sex offender if he changed addresses – regardless of what state he lived in.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office received information from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement about Akerblom living in Stonecrest. FDLE provided a copy of the registration form he had signed and a letter that was sent in April 2016 reporting a move to Brooksville. And records showed that Akerblom changed his driver’s license on Jan. 24 to reflect his current address in Stonecrest.
A deputy went to Akerblom’s home on Wednesday, May 8, and spoke with his wife, who said he drives a truck and wouldn’t return until Monday. She told the deputy that she wrote a letter that her husband signed on April 19, 2016 to authorities in Massachusetts stating that they had moved to Florida. And she claimed Massachusetts officials told her “that was all she needed to do,” a sheriff’s office report states.
The deputy made contact with Akerblom on Monday and he reiterated that his wife had written a letter in April 2016 and she had been told that was all they needed to do. He claimed he didn’t know he had a lifetime stipulation to register as a sex offender but after reading the requirements from Massachusetts, he realized he had made a mistake, the report says.
The deputy spoke with Akerblom’s wife again and asked if she had any documentation to support her claim that her husband was no longer required to register as a sex offender. She said she did not and was never provided any, the report says.
Akerblom was then taken into custody and transported to the Marion County Jail, where he was charged with failing to register as a sex offender. He was held on $10,000 bond and is due in court on June 18 at 9 a.m. to answer to the charge.
