A 57-year-old Dunn man is behind bars in Wake County after deputies accused him of sexually assaulting a child in incidents investigators say began in 2005. Authorities arrested Steven Kohls on Wednesday, booked him on multiple felony counts, and are holding him without bond ahead of a court appearance scheduled for Thursday afternoon.
According to WRAL, deputies say they received a report of an alleged sexual assault on Saturday, May 2, which triggered the investigation. The Wake County Sheriff's Office says Kohls faces eight counts of sexual activity by a custodian, three counts of sex offense - parental role, and two counts of statutory sex offense of a child by an adult, and that he was booked into the Wake County Detention Center. The outlet reports he is expected to appear in Wake County court Thursday at 1:30 p.m.
What the charges mean under state law
North Carolina treats custodial sex offenses and certain statutory offenses as serious felonies that can carry significant prison time. Under North Carolina General Assembly, sexual activity by a substitute parent or custodian is classified as a Class E felony, and the statute explicitly states that “consent is not a defense.” The separate statute covering statutory sexual offense with a child by an adult, North Carolina General Assembly, sets out higher penalties and mandatory minimums for sexual acts involving very young children and allows aggravated sentencing in the most severe cases.
Why decades-old allegations still result in arrests
Wake County investigators have pursued historical allegations before; for example, WRAL reported in March that deputies arrested a man tied to an alleged 1998 assault after a DNA match. Experts and researchers note that delayed disclosure is common in child-sex cases, which helps explain why some investigations lead to arrests many years later. A 2024 systematic scoping review found persistent barriers to disclosure and frequent patterns of delayed reporting among child victims, a factor that can complicate but does not preclude prosecution.
Kohls' arrest now moves into the Wake County criminal process; any formal filings, plea entries or further court dates will appear in public court records. The charges are allegations, and Kohls is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
