Epping Man Arrested on Sexual Assault Charge

A New Hampshire man faces sexual and simple assault charges after allegedly inappropriately touching a teenage girl from Maryland at a local motel.

Robert R. Bauer, 62, of Epping, was arrested on May 25, at the on South Main Street and charged with sexual assault, simple assault (personal weapons), and default or breach of bail conditions.

According to an affidavit, police were called to the motel at around 7 p.m. and spoke to a woman who stated that one of her soccer players, a 14-year-old girl from Delaware, had allegedly been groped in a stairwell by another patron of the inn.

The woman stated that while the girl was coming down a stairwell at the north end of the building, a man from the second floor, later identified as Bauer, was coming up the stairs and bumped into her.

The girl reportedly apologized for running into Bauer. Bauer then allegedly “caressed her face and then continued to run his hand down over her neck, shoulders, then onto her upper exposed chest then over her clothing caressing her breasts,” the woman stated.

The woman stated that the girl was “visibly shaking” after the encounter. When asked to ID the man who did this, the girl told the woman that it was “Mr. Creepy.”

According to the woman, shortly after arriving at the motel, the woman “classified” Bauer as “Mr. Creepy,” because he was “overly friendly,” almost “aggressively friendly,” allegedly asking all kinds of questions about the girls. The woman alleged that the one conversation that she had with Bauer “lead directly to multiple questions about the girls, how many were there, their ages, what they were doing in the area, and how they were dispersed about the inn,” according to the affidavit.

The woman stated that she found the Bauer’s actions “concerning and alarming” and warned other chaperones to be cautious about him. She also alleged that Bauer had his motel room open all the time and allegedly try to engage with any of the girls that walked by his room. The woman also claimed Bauer walked around the second floor balcony wearing nothing but black biking pants but didn't seem to have a bicycle anywhere.

The officer spoke to the girl who confirmed her chaperone’s testimony and stated that she froze after being allegedly touched by Bauer. Bauer allegedly asked if the girl was OK, before quickly moving up the stairs to his room, she stated. The girl then ran to her parent’s room and told the chaperone what had happened.

The officer wrote that the girl appeared “mature, articulate” for her age.

Another teenage girl from Maryland was with the alleged victim for part of the time but didn’t see the entire incident.

All involved filled out written statements.

The officer then went to speak to Bauer who was “initially very agitated” according to the affidavit.

“It took a moment to calm him down,” the officer stated.

When asked what happened with the girl, Bauer allegedly replied, “nothing,” and stated that he went to get some food and when he came back, the girls were running around on the stairwell. When asked again if anything happened, Bauer allegedly replied, “No.”

The officer again asked Bauer to explain what happened with the girl and he allegedly “became very nervous” and began to sweat, according to the affidavit.

“Well, she came running down the stairs and bumped into me,” he allegedly stated.

Bauer reportedly said he was wearing flip-flops at the time and that the bottom of the stairs were wet due to a puddle and he slipped on the water. Bauer allegedly said he may have touched her shoulder when he slipped. Later, he reportedly said he couldn’t have touched her at all, since he had bags of food in both hands. Bauer also reportedly told the officer that he had been staying at the motel for about a week.

The officer then proceeded to do some more investigating and reportedly found out from the motel management that Bauer had not been there for a week but had checked in about three hours before. The officer then checked the stairwell and found no puddle of water or any evidence of the stairs being wet or cleaned up.

After returning to Bauer’s room, the officer again asked him to tell him what happened at the bottom of the stairs. Bauer allegedly changed his story again, stating this time that he and the girl had bumped into each other, that he slipped in a puddle, and grabbed the girl for balance.

The officer then asked Bauer why he was at the motel if he lived in Epping. Bauer allegedly replied that he didn’t have a permanent home and didn’t have any other place to go.

“Based on the exigent circumstances of no permanent address, I placed Bauer under arrest,” the officer wrote.

At the station, the officer was informed that Bauer had been arrested on May 7, and was currently out on bail. An additional charge of breach of bail was added to his charges.

Cash bail was set at $10,000, and Bauer had a court date on May 29.