(Middletown, DE.19709) Detectives with the New Castle County Division of Police have charged 37-year-old Stephen Scott of Elkton, Maryland, with multiple counts of rape following an investigation that began in December 2025.

The investigation began after a parent observed an unknown male on their home security camera entering a vehicle in front of their residence in Middletown. A subsequent review of the footage revealed that the suspect, later identified as Stephen Scott, had been in contact with a 15-year-old female resident of the home.

Due to the nature of the incident, Detectives from the Criminal Investigations Unit were notified and took over the investigation. Their investigation revealed that in October 2025, Scott began contacting the 15-year-old victim through a social media messaging platform. Detectives determined that Scott engaged in ongoing conversations with the victim, resulting in multiple sexual interactions between October and December 2025.

Detectives from the Fugitive Apprehension and Surveillance Team were notified and assigned to locate Stephen Scott. On Wednesday, December 17, 2025, with assistance from the Maryland State Police, Scott was located at a residence in the 1300 block of Stone Gate Boulevard in Elkton, Maryland, and taken into custody without incident.

On Friday, December 19, 2025, Stephen Scott was transported to New Castle County Police Headquarters, where he was charged with the following offenses:

• Eight felony counts of Rape Third Degree Victim is Less Than 16 Years.

• One felony count of Sexual Solicitation of a Child Using Computer/Cell Phone/Other Electronic Device

• One felony count of Unlawful Sexual Contact Second Degree.

Stephen Scott was arraigned by the Justice of the Peace Court 11 and committed to the Howard Young Correctional Institution after failing to pay $1,000,000.00 cash bail.

Stephen Scott – 37