Sunbury, Pa. — The children of Alexis Marie Anstey, 27, and David Joseph Heller, 34, of Sunbury, told police they had been locked inside their room for 10 hours and hit with various items, including a belt.
Anstey and Heller now face a combined 48 charges for the alleged incidents which police began investigating on June 29, 2023. Warrants for their arrest were issued Friday out of the office of District Judge Rachel Wiest-Benner.
Officers Aaron Doyle and Dara Golden-Kieski of Sunbury Police Department began investigating the couple on June 29, 2023, after receiving a CYS referral, according to the affidavit. Police were told that Heller and Anstey allegedly lock their children in a room all day. The children were ages 4, 6, and 7 at the time.
CYS worker Keira advised this was not the first time they received a report with police involvement. A previous report was made for the children allegedly being locked in a basement, according to the affidavit.
On June 28, 2023, the mother of two of the children reached out to authorities after she received text messages from Anstey regarding the children's care. Anstey told the mother she returned home after working 10 hours and found two of the children locked in a second-floor room, unfed, and banging on the windows and door, according to the affidavit. The children allegedly had wiped feces on the wall.
When officers toured the home on June 29, 2023, they saw safety knobs on the inside of doors. Heller told police and Keira that the safety knobs were recommended by a previous CYS caseworker due to one of the children sleepwalking, according to the affidavit. Heller removed the safety knobs at the direction of Keira.
On July 29, 2023, police interviewed Anstey. She told them about the incident in which she found two of the children locked in a room when she returned home from work. Anstey said she fed the children when they told her they were hungry. She reported that she found the children playing with toys and there were no locks on the doors. Anstey claimed there were only door alarms on the outside of the doors, which CYS previously advised they use. Anstey said the children do not stay in their rooms at night and are often found playing downstairs, according to the affidavit.
Anstey told police the mother of two of Heller's children previously got a protection from abuse order on Heller in order to protect the kids. Antsey also filed at one point for an emergency PFA on Heller, but it was dropped when she did not follow up at county court, police noted.
Over the next few months, the four children in the home were interviewed at the Child Advocacy Center (CAC) in Sunbury. The 4-year-old told the forensic interviewer that she was hit by Heller in the buttocks with a belt, according to the affidavit.
The 7-year-old child reportedly told the CAC interviewer that Heller put him in a trash bag, according to the affidavit. During the interview with the 6-year-old child, he disclosed that Heller hit him with a belt, spatula, and a wooden spoon. The child reported the children were locked in a bedroom for 10 hours until Anstey got home from work, let the children out, and fed them. The children could not get out of the room due to the lock on the inside of the door.
The 6-year-old boy also said Heller put him and another child in a trash bag "with stinky stuff," according to the affidavit. Heller then "taped" them up with the stinky stuff and said he would kick the bag while the kids were in there.
The final interview was done with a 6-year-old girl in the home, who said Anstey put her in a dumpster or trash can with stinky stuff. She told the interviewer Heller hit her in the back with a belt.
Heller and Anstey charged with felony counts of unlawful restraint of a minor, false imprisonment, misdemeanors of recklessly endangering another person, and summary harassment. Heller was arraigned on Saturday by on-call District Judge William Cole who set bail at $100,000. Anstey was arraigned Monday morning at the office of District Judge Rachel Wiest-Benner. Her bail was set at $75,000. Both have preliminary hearings scheduled for July 23 at Wiest-Benner's office.
Docket sheet Heller
Docket sheet Anstey
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