ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. — A former school bus driver with the Francis Howell School District is facing more than 20 child sex charges, and St. Charles County police are alerting parents that he had contact with "hundreds" of children as a bus driver.
In a press release, the St. Charles County Police Department said they are investigating Robert W. Stillwell, 66, for "possible unlawful contact with minors." Due to the nature of his crimes, the department is working with the school district to issue an alert to parents.
"We have been working closely with the Francis Howell School District to notify families of students assigned to one of these bus routes," the press release from the police department said. "If your child was included on a bus route assigned to Stillwell, you should have received an email from the District."
The press release said he was on the following routes:
2021-2022 School Year
- Route 10 (Bryan Middle) and Route 40 (Hollenbeck Middle, Bryan Middle and Castlio Elementary)
2022-2023 School Year
- Route 39 (Hollenbeck Middle, Central Elementary, and Castlio Elementary) and Route 72 (Francis Howell North, Barnwell Middle, and Harvest Ridge Elementary)
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Anthony Altman with the St. Charles County Cyber Crime Task Force at 636-949-7900 ext. 4582 or via email at aaltman@sccmo.org.
The Francis Howell School District provided the following statement:
"The District was recently made aware that a former employee is the subject of a child exploitation investigation by the St. Charles County Cyber Crime Task Force. This same individual was also criminally charged earlier this year. However, the former employee has not been employed by the District since May 15, 2023, and there is no indication that the criminal charges against the former employee are related to his previous employment with the District. We have and will continue to fully cooperate with law enforcement as they complete their investigation."
According to online court documents, police began their investigation in December after a family reported that Stillwell sexually assaulted their child. The parents said Stillwell was a family friend who watched the victim, including overnight stays, "countless" times.
After an initial investigation, Stillwell was charged with child molestation and, sexual misconduct involving a child under the age of 15 and multiple other crimes. His bond was set at $200,000, cash only.
Court documents said police served a search warrant at Stillwell's home in January and discovered "hundreds, if not thousands" of photos, videos or audio files potentially depicting child sexual abuse material. The court documents said some of the videos showed Stillwell engaging in illegal sexual activity with children, which the most recent probable cause statement said happened between January 2021 and October of 2023.
In March, prosecutors amended his initial charges and charged him with 19 additional charges. In all, he was charged with 12 counts of first-degree statutory sodomy of a victim under the age of 12, nine counts of possession of child pornography, one count of second-degree child molestation and one count of sexual misconduct involving a child under the age of 15.
None of the court documents indicate Stillwell met the victims through his role as a school bus driver, but they said he "had contact with hundreds of children over the last several years."
Calvasean Ford lives doors from where Stillwell use to live on Spring Wood Drive in St. Peters.
Ford has a 4 year old son of his own and says he can't imagine what parents facing this reality feel.
"I wouldn't know what to do with myself if somebody were to do that to my little guy. I'd be really, really mad," Ford said.
Ford says his young son will grow up in the district and wants better for current students.
"I know they do background checks, but you never know," Ford said.
St. Charles County Police said the investigation remains open, active and anyone who believes their child is affected should contact police immediately.
You can do so by calling Detective Anthony Altman with the department's Cyber Crime Task Force at the number 636-949-4582 ext. 4582.
To report a crime to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, visit their CyberTipline online.