Francis Buckheit, of East Islip, suspect in missing girl case, ordered held without bail
Francis Buckheit, middle, appears in Suffolk County Court in Riverhead, where he was arraigned on a superseding indictment on Tuesday. Credit: Newsday/James Carbone
A Suffolk County judge on Tuesday ordered an East Islip man accused of raping and kidnapping a 14-year-old East Patchogue girl during her 25-day disappearance to remain behind bars pending trial.
Francis Buckheit, 64, appeared before acting State Supreme Court Justice Karen Wilutis in Riverhead for an arraignment on a superseding indictment unsealed last month. Buckheit has pleaded not guilty to first-degree kidnapping, second-degree rape and other charges.
Buckheit is one of 11 defendants charged in the 83-count superseding indictment related to the teen’s disappearance from Dec. 9 to Jan. 3. He does not face new charges in the superseding indictment and his appearance before Wilutis was a formality.
Buckheit’s defense attorney, Danielle Papa, asked Wilutis to allow her client to post bail, saying he was not a flight risk due to deep ties to Suffolk County.
Buckheit is a six-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force, she said, and his sister and brother-in-law attended Tuesday’s hearing.
"We continue to maintain my client’s innocence in this case," Papa said after the arraignment. "He’s still very upset to be found in the situation that he is in."
Papa said she recently received some evidence in the case from Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney’s office and is expecting to receive additional discovery in the near future.
"The more we investigate the case, it is like a rabbit hole," Papa said, explaining the evidence she has already reviewed provides a great deal of information about the teen and her past behavior.
"The hope is that this additional information will exonerate Mr. Buckheit," Papa added.
Buckheit’s relatives declined to discuss the case with a reporter.
Suffolk prosecutors said the girl was held from Dec. 13 to Jan. 3 on a 56-foot boat owned by Buckheit that was docked at White Cap Marina in Islip. The prosecutors have alleged Buckheit kidnapped the girl and raped her during the three weeks she stayed on the boat.
Buckheit was the first person arrested in the case, according to authorities.
Newsday is not naming the girl, who is now 15, because she is a minor and the alleged victim of a sex crime.
At an April 8 arraignment for another defendant in the case, Anthony Wright, of Amityville, prosecutors said Buckheit arranged for Wright to bring a woman to the boat so a third defendant, Daniel Burke, of Bohemia, could have sex with her in exchange for money.
Burke, 63, was able to make only a partial payment for the tryst, according to prosecutors, who said the victim later overheard Buckheit say during a phone call that he had figured out a way to settle the rest of the bill. Buckheit drove the girl to Wright’s Silverpine Drive home, where Wright had sex with the teen and provided her with crack cocaine. Burke’s debt, prosecutors allege, was forgiven after that.
Burke, accused of kidnapping and raping the teen, has also pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Wright, 40, and Daniel Soto, 36, were the only defendants charged with new counts in the superseding indictment. Wright is charged with second-degree rape and other crimes. He pleaded not guilty to the charges on April 8.
Soto, of Bay Shore, faces charges of second-degree rape and endangering the welfare of a child. He pleaded not guilty at an April 1 arraignment.
A Suffolk County judge on Tuesday ordered an East Islip man accused of raping and kidnapping a 14-year-old East Patchogue girl during her 25-day disappearance to remain behind bars pending trial.
Francis Buckheit, 64, appeared before acting State Supreme Court Justice Karen Wilutis in Riverhead for an arraignment on a superseding indictment unsealed last month. Buckheit has pleaded not guilty to first-degree kidnapping, second-degree rape and other charges.
Buckheit is one of 11 defendants charged in the 83-count superseding indictment related to the teen’s disappearance from Dec. 9 to Jan. 3. He does not face new charges in the superseding indictment and his appearance before Wilutis was a formality.
Buckheit’s defense attorney, Danielle Papa, asked Wilutis to allow her client to post bail, saying he was not a flight risk due to deep ties to Suffolk County.
Buckheit is a six-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force, she said, and his sister and brother-in-law attended Tuesday’s hearing.
"We continue to maintain my client’s innocence in this case," Papa said after the arraignment. "He’s still very upset to be found in the situation that he is in."
Papa said she recently received some evidence in the case from Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney’s office and is expecting to receive additional discovery in the near future.
"The more we investigate the case, it is like a rabbit hole," Papa said, explaining the evidence she has already reviewed provides a great deal of information about the teen and her past behavior.
"The hope is that this additional information will exonerate Mr. Buckheit," Papa added.
Buckheit’s relatives declined to discuss the case with a reporter.
Suffolk prosecutors said the girl was held from Dec. 13 to Jan. 3 on a 56-foot boat owned by Buckheit that was docked at White Cap Marina in Islip. The prosecutors have alleged Buckheit kidnapped the girl and raped her during the three weeks she stayed on the boat.
Buckheit was the first person arrested in the case, according to authorities.
Newsday is not naming the girl, who is now 15, because she is a minor and the alleged victim of a sex crime.
At an April 8 arraignment for another defendant in the case, Anthony Wright, of Amityville, prosecutors said Buckheit arranged for Wright to bring a woman to the boat so a third defendant, Daniel Burke, of Bohemia, could have sex with her in exchange for money.
Burke, 63, was able to make only a partial payment for the tryst, according to prosecutors, who said the victim later overheard Buckheit say during a phone call that he had figured out a way to settle the rest of the bill. Buckheit drove the girl to Wright’s Silverpine Drive home, where Wright had sex with the teen and provided her with crack cocaine. Burke’s debt, prosecutors allege, was forgiven after that.
Burke, accused of kidnapping and raping the teen, has also pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Wright, 40, and Daniel Soto, 36, were the only defendants charged with new counts in the superseding indictment. Wright is charged with second-degree rape and other crimes. He pleaded not guilty to the charges on April 8.
Soto, of Bay Shore, faces charges of second-degree rape and endangering the welfare of a child. He pleaded not guilty at an April 1 arraignment.
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