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Aug 28, 2023

Rape charges dismissed against man accused by Cleveland EMT who went missing

Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge William Vodrey dismissed rape charges that had been filed against Michael Stennett, a Cleveland youth baseball coach who worked at Zelma Watson George

Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge William Vodrey dismissed rape charges that had been filed against Michael Stennett, a Cleveland youth baseball coach who worked at Zelma Watson George Recreation Center, Thursday morning.

Stennett was indicted May 9, 2022, on two counts of rape and one count of abduction in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. Vodrey dismissed the charges after prosecutors in the case requested they be dropped due to "inconsistencies" they uncovered after a review of the case.

The case involved Lachelle Jordan, 30, a Cleveland EMS worker who went missing for five days in May.

Earlier this year, stalking charges filed in a separate case against Stennett were also dropped. Prosecutors said there were "inconsistencies" in that case, too; both cases involved Jordan, who accused him of menacing her for months.

Watch our report on those charges being dismissed earlier this year:

Jordan reported to Cleveland police that she had been stalked by Stennett and his associates at least three times before she went missing for five days in May.

Jordan went missing on May 6, days before she was supposed to appear at a pretrial hearing in connection with Stennett's rape case.

Jordan resurfaced at a convenience store in Collinwood just after midnight on May 12. She had a torn and tattered shirt and no shoes as she limped into the Open Pantry convenience store on East 166th Street and Euclid Avenue in East Cleveland and later told authorities she had been kidnapped.

Cleveland Police have not made any arrests or filed any charges in the kidnapping case but say the investigation remains ongoing. Investigators said they also found inconsistent evidence in that case.

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