Stow molestor called a 'parent's worst nightmare' at sentencing

AKRON -- He held positions of trust as a police officer, church leader and Boy Scout leader. Yet, rather than use those positions to develop young boys into men, a Stow man took advantage of the boys.

Glen VanKleeck, 70, received 15 years in prison Monday after pleading guilty to five felony counts of Gross Sexual Imposition. He admitted to molesting boys for years, mostly in Florida, but claims he's found God behind bars and is no longer a threat.

"I regret anything that happen," VanKleeck said. "I never, swear to God, would never hurt anybody again."

Relatives of VanKleeck's most recent victim, an 11-year-old Stow boy, told Judge Robert Gippin that VanKleek deserved a hard punishment for his crimes.

Gippin had hard words for VanKleeck to include scolding him for casting a bad light on the Boy Scouts. Gippin hoped that the media would see VanKleeck as the exception and not the rule when it comes to single men who devote time to scouting.