Indictments issued in July chases and search, sexual assaults

Sep. 1—A Quinlan man has been indicted in connection with a July incident where he lead Hunt County law enforcement agencies on a search following a high speed chase and stolen vehicle.

The Hunt County grand jury issued multiple indictments Friday naming David Anthony Piepenburg.

The panel also charged a Mesquite man and a Quinlan resident in separate alleged cases of the sexual abuse of children and indicted a Wolfe City man on two family violence-related assault charges.

In all, the latest grand jury handed up 33 charges made public for consideration by the 354th District Court. It was unknown whether the grand jury also issued any indictments as sealed, pending the arrest and/or arraignment of the person or persons named in the charges.

It was also not immediately known whether the grand jury had handed down any "no bills," which means its investigation did not find sufficient evidence to issue an indictment.

Dates for arraignments on indictments have not yet been scheduled with the 354th District Court.

—Piepenburg, 40, received two indictments for evading arrest with a motor vehicle and one indictment for unauthorized use of a vehicle. One of the evading arrest cases was alleged to have occurred June 16 and one on July 15, with the count of unauthorized use of a vehicle also alleged to have occurred on July 15, the day Piepenburg was taken into custody.

The Hunt County Sheriff's Office reported that at about 9 a.m.July 14 multiple agencies attempted to stop a black Kia occupied by Piepenburg. Piepenburg led officers through the Commerce area and then onto Interstate 30 and through the grass median at speeds up to 120 mph, eventually stopping in the middle of the 2600 block of the interstate, where he exited the vehicle and fled on foot into a wooded area. Piepenburg then stole a truck with a trailer attached and continued to evade officers. While Piepenburg was fleeing, items from the trailer were falling onto areas along the route. Officers were reported to have lost sight of the truck due to heavy traffic and debris in the roadway, later locating the unoccupied truck and trailer at the intersection of Stanford and St. John streets in Greenville.

The Kia Piepenburg was driving was occupied by a passenger who was arrested on scene on charges of possession of marijuana and fraud use/poss of ID info.

Piepenburg remained in custody at the Hunt County Detention Center Monday, being held in lieu of a total of $227,000 bond on one count each of aggravated assault, evading arrest, unauthorized use of a vehicle and harassment. Bond was denied on one count each of previously filed indictments of tampering/fabricating physical evidence and prohibited substance in a correctional facility.

—Francisco Javier Brito, 43, of Quinlan, was indicted on a charge of continuous sexual assault of a child. The indictment alleged the abuse occurred on or around March 1, 2012. Brito was arrested by the Hunt County Sheriff's Office on March 16, 2020 and was being held in the jail Monday in lieu of $300,000 bond.

—J Edward Woodberry, 53, of Mesquite, was indicted on a charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child. The indictment alleged the assault occurred on or around Oct. 13, 2020. Woodberry was taken into custody on June 15. 2021 and remained in the jail Monday, being held in lieu of $250,000 bond.

—Troy Adam Lewis, 25, of Wolfe City, was indicted on one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon/family violence and assault family/house member impeding breath/or circulation. The indictments alleged both incidents occurred on April 13 of this year, the same day Lewis was taken into custody by the Hunt County Sheriff's Office. Lewis remained in custody at the jail Monday, being held in lieu of $155,000 bond.

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