How Could You? Hall of Shame-Sonja and Brian Stafford
This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.
From Martinsville, Indiana, adoptive parents Sonja and Brian Stafford are “facing more than 120 combined charges including human trafficking, neglect, and molestation, were once celebrated for their decision to adopt.
As I-Team 8 reported Thursday, Brian and Sonja Stafford were charged for dozens of crimes involving 11 victims, beginning in 2011 and spanning for more than a decade.
In 2016, they were the subject of a feature story in a local newspaper covering their adoption of 11 children, mostly from Florida. At the time of the article, the children ranged from 5 to 17 years old.
The story celebrated the empty nester’s decision to adopt, welcoming the children to their 23-acre farm in Martinsville. “
Sonja’s 62 charges include accusations that she strangled some victims, and kept at least eight from talking to police in 2020. Among Brian’s 59 charges, prosecutors claim he molested at least four minors under his care.
The Staffords divorced earlier this year. Their next court date is in March, with a jury trial scheduled in June.”
Morgan Co. couple charged with human trafficking once celebrated for adopting
[Wish TV 12/27/24 by Tim Spears]
“The 155-page probable cause affidavit became available Wednesday, Jan. 22, revealing new details in the case.”
“Prosecutor Steve Sonnega said victims are still coming forward, as detectives are looking back to incidents as far back as the 1990s.
“We are at the beginning of this case — not the end,” Sonnega said. “There’s a lot of work to do, and this case is still under investigation. The magnitude of this case is enormous.”
Anyone with additional information on the incidents is encouraged to reach out to Detective Sgt. Pat Williams at 765-349-5057 or pwilliams@morgancounty.in.gov. Tips can also be reported to Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-8477.
“Hundreds upon hundreds of man hours have been invested in this investigation, and that number is going to continue to grow,” Williams said. “We will continue to do what needs to be done to ensure that justice is found for everyone that’s been impacted by this case.”
Here’s a list of accusations uncovered in the filing:
An investigator with the Morgan County Prosecutor’s Office said the Staffords received more than $270,000 for adopting the children between December 2016 and July 2024.
According to court documents, the Staffords had 33 children in their home over 13 years.
According to the detective, a lot of the girls said they were sexually abused by Brian and were physically abused by Sonja.
The detective said one of the children in the home died by suicide in 2004.
Court documents say the Staffords put alarms on the children’s doors, so they would know when they would try to leave their rooms.
According to court documents, Brian impregnated one of the girls when she was 18 years old.
According to court documents, the children said they worked on the property from sun-up to sun-down – with some time to do schoolwork – and had a point system for discipline. In order to get points removed, the children said they could skip meals, run around the property or do extra chores.
One of the children told the detective that she saw Sonja throw another child down a hill and roll her through cow manure. The child also said Sonja would grab some of the kids’ faces and squeeze, which resulted in scratches and injuries on their faces.
According to court documents, the children said they would not get bath products to use, as a form of punishment, and were only allowed to shower on Wednesdays and Sundays.
The children described holidays to the detectives. According to the children, if someone brought them a gift, Sonja would take the gifts and lock them up and not allowed to have them.
According to court documents, Sonja told the children to lie to DCS workers about what was going on at the property — allegedly threatening them that they would be separated and never see their siblings again if they told the truth.
Court documents say Brian sexually abused one of the girls when she was 7 years old, while abusing multiple girls when they were underage.
Some of the children told the detective about frostbite they got since they weren’t given proper clothing to wear during the winter.
One of the girls told the detective that Sonja strangled her, with Sonja allegedly telling her, “The more you fight, the more I’m going to do it.”
According to court documents, one of the children said she saw Sonja throw one of the kids in a pond on the property — even though the kid didn’t know how to swim.
According to court documents, one of the children cried the night she was adopted by the couple, saying she missed her biological mother. That’s when she said Sonja smacked her in the face and said, “She’s not your mother anymore. I’m your mother.”
One of the girls said as a form of punishment, the longest she went without food was five days. One of the boys said at one point, he only had one can of sardines across three days.
The children told the detective about other forms of punishment, including getting paddled and writing thousands of sentences.
According to court documents, one of the boys said when he was 14 years old, he tried to run away but stayed on the property. The boy said Sonja found him and pointed a shotgun at him and told him to “get the f*** off the property.” That boy was then sent to a boarding school.
Court documents say one of the boys said he weighed 230 pounds when he was adopted by the couple. When he left at 18 years old, he said he was approximately 125 pounds.
One of the children said she ate a moldy cake that she was supposed to take to chickens, but she ate it herself because she was so hungry and never had that type of food.
According to court documents, Brian moved to New Castle with the adopted daughter – who is now an adult – who he impregnated and has since had their baby.
The detective spoke with a witness, who described the children as being treated like slaves, explaining how they were always working while he was there.
One of the children told the detective the Staffords were getting divorced, with both being in new relationships. However, Brian was in a relationship his adopted daughter. The divorce has since been finalized.
Sonja allegedly spoke with the case manager, who said Sonja appeared drunk and found the whole situation humorous. “
“The Staffords’ pretrial conferences are scheduled for March 31.”
[WTHR 1/22/25]
“The children reportedly were forced to operate under a punishment structure. The system, devised by Sonja, would withhold food from the children, beat them with a paddle, make them run laps, perform pushups, spend entire evenings in their room with no pillow or mattress and write Bible verses. Some of the children report writing up to 25,000 sentences or verses all through the night.”
“Sonja wouldn’t let the kids eat food because “She didn’t like wasting money on them,” she allegedly said. Although court documents estimate that the couple received approximately $300 – $417 per child every month, earning at least $271,000 from the state of Florida and from the state of Indiana.
When the children did eat, they would be forced to have a piece of bread with ketchup, a half-eaten peanut butter sandwich or a can of sardines to survive on for days while the couple ate T-bone steak, burgers and dessert.”
“The children then reported the molestation to Sonja, who allegedly threatened them if they told anyone else. Sonja, according to court documents, held a meeting that everyone should lie to the Department of Child Services, and if they did not they would be separated from their siblings and further punished.”
“Most of the children were also forced to miss out on family events like Christmas and Thanksgiving, but the couple’s two biological children were able to attend. Sonja would also reportedly taunt the children by showing them a gift, but then never actually giving it to them.”
Docs: Couple charged with 100+ crimes for alleged abuse of kids
[Fox 59 1/23/25 by Deja Studdard]
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