Story by Jaclyn O’Malley of RGJ.com / Commentary by R.T. Fitch ~ volunteer pres. of Wild Horse Freedom Federation
Wenker abused her at his Hidden Valley home during his time with the BLM
“We are following this story not for matters of sensationalism but rather for the fact that it speaks to the possible mind-set of upper BLM management. To hear BLM managers explain their actions with comments like “We do it because we can” fits right in with what has sadly happened here and there is plenty of evidence to back up that assumption.
Billing’s Field Manager Jim Sparks has been asked why BLM continually goes after the Pryor Mountain herd when science and public opinion point to the contrary and he has said, “…this is not a democracy.”
Probably the best, or from another perspective the worse, egotistical and dangerous display of turn around and thinking above the law came from recent public comments made by Don Glenn, recently retired manager of the BLM Wild Horse & Burro program and now cloaked as a Cattle Lobbyist, when he informed the National Academy of Science that the “simple solution” to the wild horse and burro management problem is “unlimited sale authority.” He stated for the record:
Bullying and abusing large animals (horses) is the last step to gaining a greater high by abusing humans. From documented behavior it appears that BLM’s management is ate up with potential abusers as we already know they delight in decimating and eliminating our wild horses from their rightful lands. Perhaps it is time we take the rose colored glasses off and look at Ken Salazar’s gang for exactly what they are…not pointing an accusing finger but surely raising the questions of both competency and motivation when it comes to those who side with special interests and ignore both the wishes of the majority and the letter of the law.” ~ R.T.
Ronald Benedict Wenker, 64, was booked by the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office on suspicion of two counts of sexual assualt of a child younger than 14 and two counts of lewdness with child younger than 14 for allegedly molesting a girl over a five-year period.
A 64-year-old recently retired Nevada Bureau of Land Management Chief used a blanket Monday night to conceal his sexual abuse of a 13-year-old girl while they watched the Olympic games with his wife and the girl’s older brother, according to recently released court documents.
The incident — witnessed and videotaped by the victim’s brother — ultimately shed light on a secret five-year period of alleged sexual abuse that was becoming increasingly more aggressive, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in support of Ronald Wenker’s arrest Tuesday on suspicion of child sex offenses.
According to the victim, Wenker abused her at his Hidden Valley home during his time with the BLM, which also included a short 2009 stint in Washington, D.C., where he ran the entire agency during the Bush-Obama transition. He retired last year.
The girl told investigators that Wenker first abused her when she was 8, the document said, in a similar incident where Wenker covered the pair with a blanket while they watched television on the couch with his wife.
During an interview Tuesday with investigators, Wenker said he recalled molesting the girl during the “course of a few years,” the affidavit said. Wenker said the girl was “attractive” and he let his “emotions go.” Wenker said inappropriate touching escalated to oral sex. He said his behavior was “very dumb” and “illegal.”
“Ronald added that he has a deep emotional bond with (the girl) and that he thought she was enjoying the touching as much as he was,” detectives wrote of Wenker’s interview.
“… Ronald added that he isn’t a pedophile and that he had a deep, emotional attachment and love for (the girl) that evolved into a sexual relationship,” the detectives continued. “Ronald stated that he had been struggling with the urge to have sexual contact with (the girl) over the years, but he never sought any help or counseling with the issue. Ronald stated that he was telling himself ‘no more’ but he slipped …”
Wenker’s attorney, Jack Fox, said Thursday he had not yet read the affidavit and had no comment. Wenker’s wife, Sherie, also had no comment when contacted at their home.
Wenker is scheduled to be arraigned Friday morning on two counts each of sexual assault with a child and lewdness with a child. He has been held in custody on no bail.
Both the Reno and Washington, D.C., BLM offices said they had no comment on Wenker’s arrest.
The girl’s 15-year-old brother realized what was going on Monday night under the blanket and videotaped the pair with his iPod, according to the affidavit filed in Reno Justice Court. He said he videotaped the incident because he wanted people to believe him when he spoke about it, according to the affadavit. He gave the video to investigators, the document said.
Prior to the incident, Wenker and the girl told deputies that her brother caught them in Wenker’s bedroom as they were kissing and Wenker was sexually assaulting the girl, the affidavit said.
“(Her brother) approached and asked what they were doing,” investigators wrote. “She said that Ronald quickly said ‘nothing, nothing’ and they walked out to watch the Olympics on TV.”
After his sister admitted to her brother that Wenker was molesting her, the boy cursed at Wenker and called 911, the document said. Wenker left the home and drove off in his truck after the boy told him deputies were on their way to the Hidden Valley home, according to the deputy. The siblings live out of the area and were visiting.
Sherie Wenker told deputies she had seen her husband lying on the floor earlier that night with the girl under a blanket and asked what was going on, the affidavit said. Wenker had told her “nothing,” the document said.
The girl told authorities she was being abused Monday night, according to the affadavit. Sherie Wenker said she learned from the girl that night about the abuse, the document said.
The girl said the abuse only occurred in Wenkers’ home, according to the document.
Click (HERE) to visit the RGJ
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- Wild Horse Groups File Preemptive “Motion for Stay” to Stop Possible Back-Door BLM Roundup (rtfitchauthor.com)
- BLM Hoodwinks Judge (rtfitchauthor.com)
Categories: Horse News, Wild Burros, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Oh I hope they hang him higher than Haman. GROSS! Sounds like a character from my BOOK!
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Not only did he screw over our American Icons, the Mustang, by ILLEGALLY rounding them up and sending them to slaughter but he also ILLEGALLY ………..
If someone can be cruel to an animal ESPECIALLY A COMPANION ANIMAL they can do the same to humans!
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This is one of the sickest individuals I have ever read about , Makes me want to vomit !!!!! A little 8 yr old who knows nothing of this kind of treatment will think this is normal, that is why we need to protect the children , I am sorry this is one sick bastard, just as the horses , she is innocent , His actions are the unthinkable and unforgivable……..I have no tolerance for for him , there are so many beautiful things in this world for a child to learn , she needs to be able to see them …..in the beautiful way she should see them………………… It took another Child to bring this to light, I have to ask where were the Adults in this ??????????????? It is hard to believe that no one else noticed ???????????????? Innocence lost !!!!! Unforgivable !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I’ve been saying it for years; “it is a short step and a thin line from abusing and killing animals to abusing and possibly killing humans”. Lucky for this girl that her brother had the courage to call the police before this sick man made her disappear (like the BLM makes the wild horses and burros disappear) rather than be found out regarding his abuse of a child.
People that exhibit the type of behavior that the pro-slaughter creeps and the anti-wild horse thugs do (devaluing life) are on an out-of-control ego trip and are also usually mentally ill (like this guys narcissistic behavior of “I thought she was enjoying the touching as much as I was”), so kudos to this girls brother for calling the sheriff’s because this sick man Ronald Wenker might have really stepped over the line at some point and done something drastic to shut the girl up if she ever threatened to talk about what he was doing to her.
I read an article the other day talking about “habituation” and that was very “telling” and explains a lot regarding the behavior of people who don’t value life. This guy is a classic example of it, as are most of the people in the BLM and also pro-horse slaughter people; their emotions are short-circuited and they are devoid of the emotions that make us compassionate, caring human beings. They do things that are shocking to most people, but because they have become “habituated” to doing what they do, it doesn’t bother them at all anymore (and thats if it ever bothered them in the first place).
Very sad situation, but thank God he’s been stopped from hurting the girl anymore, and its also giving the BLM a great big black eye and puts the other thugs into question regarding their motivations and mental health and stability in why they continue to go against the peopls will and decimate the wild horse and burro herds.
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Pedophiles recognize the behavior in others but never themselves. Saying he isn’t is not only denial but absolute cow poo. That’s great that he had feelings for the girl. You want kids to grow up, be strong, intelligent and independent. You empower kids. But the very second it goes physical either in the persons head or literally–that’s the time you need to recognize you either need help and you need to separate yourself from ALL kids IMMEDIATELY.
There is ABSOLUTELY no excuse for such behavior. I cite the creep who kidnapped Jaycee Dugard and forced her through TWO pregnancies. Jaycee gets to live with the after effects for the rest of forever and her kids get to live with that same knowledge.
Taking this mans government retirement isn’t enough. It’s a first step. I think he needs to think about castration because he doesn’t really appear to be able to manage chemical. You take away the physical thrill it’ll make him think…
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How do BLM field managers get their jobs? Sparks and Glenn are not representative of what the agency is mandated to do at the least. Wenker will prove to be a pedophile.
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Wenker is a dirty pig. The only problem he sees is that he got caught. One can only wonder what he did to the Wild Horses and Burros. Wenker is a sick individual that was in power at the BLM, it makes me think how many others like him are employed at the BLM. They like hurting and killing the poor defenseless horses. Something has do be done to stop this sh…
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Pigs don’t molest children and pigs are highly intelligent, unlike like Wanker. 😉
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How true. My Margaret Ann( 12 year old blue bottom rescued from the fair) has a better moral character than this piece of human garbage.
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How sad for this girl! He is a pedophile for certain… who cares what he feels!
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Justice will rule on this one !!! Justice will mot tolerate a pedophile…………..
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I have no doubt that his wife was aware of what he was doing just like the football coach’s wife was knew everything her husband was doing to the boy’s. I have said this before that every child molester needs to have his balls lifted but the reason it’s never done is because the judges are all male and they wouldn’t do that to one of their own.
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This man stated that he had loved this girl for a time and that it evolved into sex. He is a chronologically mature adult attracted to a child. This is the definition of pedophilia. Some pedophiles recognize their attraction and avoid situations which may tempt them to act in ways that their mature conscious recognizes is wrong. Some men (or women) marry hoping that marriage will cure them, but almost always find that it doesn’t.
Although research on this indicates that there is likely a genetic cause for pedophilia, I still see this as child abuse and in a larger context, abuse by the powerful of the vulnerable, a recurring theme in our work for equine welfare. No matter who we are, as human beings we are subject to any number of temptations, but we have free will. We have the power to conduct ourselves in ways that do no harm to our fellow humans or to our animal companions.
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Great comment Christie and goes straight to the issue of those in “power”: they have CHOICES every single day, just as we ALL do, however, some people are weak willed, and also seriously sick (as evidenced by his rationalization that he thought this poor child was enjoying having sex with him……..I mean, REALLY? In what area of civilized society is that normal or O.K.? NONE that I know of!) but they have ended up in positions where they are actually paid by we taxpayers to make decisions that affect those who cannot defend themselves (the wild horses and burros).
The BLM needs a SERIOUS “house cleaning” and we need to eradicate those who are habituated to perpetuating the extermination of OUR wild horses and burros, and who kow-tow to the factions who are taking over OUR open range as we taxpayers are FORCED to pay for the running of their PRIVATE businesses and the theft of OUR land where OUR wild horses and burros legally live.
Furthermore, how did the wife NOT KNOW (?); there were signs and signals and she should be prosecuted as a co-conspirator in the sexual abuse of the child…….if not for the courage of that girls brother and having the smarts to video it, it could have been months, years or maybe never that she said anything.
This guy is a disgusting individual and unfortunately, there are MOST LIKELY many more just like him who are sick and twisted in their own ways that are employed and being paid with our taxpayer dollars ……we need to demand a full investigation by a neutral party to expose the rest of the criminals and thugs in the BLM and put in a broad spectrum of people so we can bring balance to the agency.
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As a court reporter, I took expert testimony of psychiatrists regarding child molestations in similar situations. Mr. Wenker’s comment that he is not a pedophile and that he had a deep emotional attachment and love for the child is actually a typical pedophile’s mindset. They usually “love” the child and “would never do anything to hurt them,” i.e., in their mind there is great denial that what they are doing is a terrible thing to this child. They seldom view themselves as wrong or harmful or evil, which makes them all the more dangerous
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All the more reason to remove him from society, He mentally and physically harmed this girl, she in her mind thinks this is normal, for this there is no excuse………………………..
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