An Aurelius woman is facing more charges after allegedly threatening a witness in her previous criminal trial.
According to the Cayuga County Sheriff’s Office, members became aware on October 15 of a defendant in a previous criminal trial sending messages to a witness demanding they drop statements made against her. An investigation determined that 27-year-old Grace Shepard was the one sending messages attempting to threaten and coerce the witness.
Shepard was arrested the following day and charged with misdemeanor counts of Tampering with a Witness and Coercion. She was arraigned and released to appear in court at a later date.
Earlier this month, Shepard was arrested for allegedly endangering the welfare of her three-month-old child following a joint investigation by the sheriff’s office AMR Ambulance, Child Protective Services, and the Children’s Advocacy Center in Auburn.
She had previously been arrested in May after allegedly being found in possession of an envelope containing fentanyl during a search of an Auburn house by the Finger Lakes Drug Task Force
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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