On 9/13/19 at approximately 10:35 am, Whitefish Bay Police arrested a registered sex offender, David Pitel, a resident of Whitefish Bay. The arrest occurred in the beach parking lot at Klode Park. David Pitel was arrested for a municipal ordinance violation for being present in a Child Safety Zone. Registered sex offenders are prohibited by Whitefish Bay ordinance to be in areas where children are likely to congregate.
This case came together when a woman, who was walking in the area of Big Bay Park, on 9/11/19, approached one of our officers. She reported that on the last 3 days she observed a man, with his shirt off, sitting in his truck in the parking lot at Klode Park at different times of the day. The woman had memorized the truck’s license plate number. Our officer ‘ran’ this license plate number and discovered it was David Pitel’s vehicle. Officers closely monitored the park and observed him there on 9/13/19 and he was arrested.
David Pitel is on Department of Corrections parole supervision due to a sentencing in February of 2012 for Possession of Child Pornography. The Department of Corrections placed a hold on David Pitel and he is in secure custody at the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility. David Pitel is subject to a revocation proceeding by the Department of Corrections whereupon he could be sent to prison for up to five years.
We are continuing our investigation of this incident and we are working with the Department of Corrections into the conduct of David Pitel. We have had no reports of children in Whitefish Bay being approached by David Pitel or any other person. At this time we do not have any evidence that David Pitel knew Sex Offender Registrant Raymond Hoelzer. Raymond Hoelzer was arrested on 8/6/19 for a Sex Offender Violation related to his presence in Klode Park on 7/23/19.
Whitefish Bay is a very safe Village; this safety is a result of an active and alert citizenry working with their police officers. We do not believe that the children of Whitefish Bay are at risk and we believe our parks are safe. We have always had a strong presence by our parks and we will continue to do so.
Chief Michael Young
