Sixty-eight year old Ralph Conone was arrested on March 10th in a Columbus, Ohio Wal-Mart after another shopper accused him of hitting her sons, a six-year-old and a seven-year-old. Surveillance videos both confirm the attack on the two children, but also show Conone assaulting two other children who they are still trying to identify.
Sgt. John Hurst of the special victim’s bureau of the Columbus Police Department told the Columbus Dispatch that, “He stated that he does this because of the excitement of being able to do it and get away with it with the parents right there. He’ll just strike them in the head and just turn around and walk away.” Conone hits his victims with a closed fist wrapped around a protruding key.
When questioned further, Conone also revealed that he targeted young children because they couldn’t do anything to protect themselves. Conone is divorced, lives alone and apparently is a manic depressive with mental issues. He does not have a prior criminal record. Investigators believe that Conone is responsible for multiple other assaults dating from the beginning of this year. As of Sunday, they have only filed two additional charges. The new charges are related to a two year old who was assaulted in two separate incidents in the same Wal-Mart on February 28th.
Conone is being held on a $150,000 bond and will be placed under house arrest if he makes bail. He has also been banned from Wal-Mart. As a parent, this incident can only emphasize how important it is to keep a close eye on kids in stores and to make sure you children are well trained to make a lot of noise if a stranger does something to hurt them or take them.
