Sussex Teen Faces Additional Sexual Assault Charge

A Sussex teen already convicted of sexually assaulting a minor faces an additional sexual assault charge stemming from an incident when he was 15 or 16 years old.

Daniel S. Koepke, 18, was charged Thursday with first-degree sexual assault of a child. If convicted, he faces up to 40 years in prison.

Koepke is accused of inappropriately touching a friend’s sister between June 2010 and March 2011 when she was 12 or 13, according to a criminal complaint. The incident was reported to the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department in Nov. 8 – just two days after his sexual assault charges were made public in Sussex.

The girl told investigators Koepke was at her home for a sleepover with her brother and his friends. She fell asleep on a bean bag chair, she told detectives, and when she woke up, Koepke had his hand down her shirt “just a little” and his hand on her butt, according to the complaint.

After the girl fell back asleep, she told police, Koepke placed his hand down her shirt and pants. He pulled away when she woke up, the complaint states.

“Why would you do that?” she told Koepke before going upstairs with her phone. Koepke sent her a text message to say he was sorry and it was a mistake, according to the complaint.

However, the next summer, Koepke sent her another text message asking her if she wanted to have a water balloon fight at Woodside Elementary School, stating he wanted to see her in a swim suit, according to the criminal complaint.

The girl did not meet with him and has avoided being in situations where he could touch her again. The girl told investigators she initially didn’t report the incident because of her allegiance to her brother, the complaint states.

Koepke is already spending 22 months in prison for a sexual assault conviction involving a 6-year-old girl in Washington County.

The case drew the attention of the Sussex community during the past few weeks after it was revealed that the Hamilton School District was unaware of the court proceedings until Nov. 6, almost four months after he was charged.

School district officials sent a letter to Woodside Elementary School parents in November informing them that a teenager — Koepke — accused of sexually assaulting a 6-year-old girl, lived near their school.