Last Updated on July 16, 2021 by Cass County Prosecutor
LOGANSPORT –Noah Schafer, the Cass County Prosecuting Attorney, announced that Laadis Orlando Saavedra, 65, of Logansport was sentenced to sixteen years in the Indiana Department of Correction for Attempted Rape, Child Exploitation, Vicarious Sexual Gratification, and Sexual Battery. Saavedra was found guilty at the conclusion of a jury trial on June 15, 2021in Cass County Circuit Court with Judge Stephen Roger Kitts, II presiding.Chief Deputy Prosecutor Tom Lupke handled the case.
The charges stemmed from an investigation by the Logansport Police Department in July of 2019. At trial, the jury heard evidence that the defendant compelled the minor victim to send recordings of herself performing sexual acts by bribing her with money. After she arrived in the United States, he attempted to force himself on her.
During sentencing, the State asked the Court for the sentence based on his position having care, custody and control of the minor victim, as well as his violation of the Court’s order that he have no contact with the victim while the case was pending. According to Court records, Saavedra was previously convicted of three misdemeanors in Cass County.
Prosecutor Noah Schafer commented after the sentencing: “This was a tough case, and I commend the detectives with the Logansport Police Department for their diligence during the investigation. I am also grateful for the willingness of the jurors on this case to sit through evidence that was difficult to watch and come to a just outcome.
SOURCE: News release from Cass County Prosecutor