Correction: In an initial online version of this story on Tuesday, April 8, The 69 incorrectly said two people had been released on bond. In fact, while bond was set, neither paid that and remained in custody at the Rock County Jail. The online story was corrected on Tuesday evening and the Wednesday print and e-editions were correct on this point upon publication. Additionally, due to an incomplete understanding of the content of the criminal complaint, one of two firearms investigators said were tied to the incident was reported as a rifle. In fact, it was a type of handgun that could be loaded with rifle rounds, and rifle rounds were found in the vehicle of one of the people charged. That mistake has been corrected below. The 69 regrets the errors and any confusion those caused.
EVANSVILLE --- Two people have been charged in Rock County Circuit Court in connection with the shooting death Sunday of a 14-year-old Evansville girl.
In a release early Tuesday afternoon, the Rock County Sheriff’s Office said the investigation was ongoing into the teen’s death, and that three people were in custody at the Rock County Jail.
Two of the three were charged in court Tuesday afternoon.
Hunter J. Drefahl, 26, of Evansville, was charged with one count of second-degree sexual assault of a child under the age of 16, one count of sexual exploitation of a child, and five counts of possession of child pornography.
Alyssa A. Ahrens
According to electronic court records, $750,000 cash bond was set for Drefahl pending a preliminary hearing on April 21 at 9:30 a.m. before Court Commissioner Jack Hoag. The Rock County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday night Drefahl had not posted bond and remained in custody.
Alyssa A. Ahrens, 20, of Evansville, was charged with one count of second-degree sexual assault of a child under age 16, one count of sexual exploitation of a child, three counts of possession of child pornography and one count of possession of methamphetamine.
According to electronic court records, $500,000 cash bond was set for Ahrens pending a preliminary hearing on April 21 at 8:30 a.m. before Court Commissioner Jack Hoag. The Rock County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday night Ahrens had not posted bond and remained in custody.
Hunter J. Drefahl
A third person was arrested following the shooting, William S. Drefahl, 44, of Evansville, on a probation violation. He has not been charged in court.
GoFundMe
The sheriff’s office has not released the name of the victim.
However, a GoFundMe shared with local media outlets identified her. It is at .
According to the GoFundMe page, “14-year-old Florencia Henthorn lost her life on Sunday, April 6, a victim of gun violence.”
“Please consider donating to help her family lay her to rest. No parent should ever have to plan their child’s funeral or worry about how to pay for it,” the GoFundMe page continued.
As of early Tuesday afternoon, the GoFundMe started by a family friend had reached over $6,000 of its $10,000 goal.
The 69 reached out directly to the organizer of the GoFundMe, with no additional immediate response.
Criminal complaint
According to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in Rock County Circuit Court:
Shortly after 9 a.m. Sunday, an Evansville police officer was flagged down by a man at Ahrens’ and Drefahl’s house. He reported that a female inside had a gunshot wound to the head.
Henthorn was treated at Mercy Hospital in Janesville and transferred to UW Hospital in Madison, where she died in surgery Sunday afternoon.
Rock County Sheriff’s Office detectives, as part of a subsequent investigation, uncovered evidence that Hunter Drefahl and Ahrens had had sexual contact with Henthorn and had recorded that and shared the videos.
On Sunday morning, Evansville EMS and sheriff’s deputies offered lifesaving care to Henthorn, who was initially conscious and responsive. Meanwhile, another deputy spoke with Ahrens who was on the phone with Hunter Drefahl, who had fled to a family member’s home.
Drefahl told the deputy he was outside when the shot was fired and said that he later removed a handgun from the scene. Investigators later found a handgun, described in the criminal complaint as a "Keltec 22LR, long rifle caliber," in the pocket of a pair of shorts belonging to Drefahl.
A second firearm, a 9 mm handgun, was found by investigators in Drefahl’s vehicle. Also found in the vehicle were 9 mm ammo, both spent and unspent .22 rifle rounds, and a gun case.
According to Ahrens, Henthorn had spent the night at their house and they had smoked marijuana.
Ahrens told investigators she had left to pick up a rental car earlier that morning and that Hunter Drefahl had called her shortly before 9 a.m., saying, “I don’t know what happened, she was sitting on the couch, and I don’t know.”
Hunter Drefahl’s father, William Drefahl, was also reportedly at the house the night before the shooting. He told investigators he and his son were talking outside when they heard a pop. He said he went inside and found Henthorn on the couch, suffering a gunshot wound to the head.
William Drefahl told investigators his son had purchased three guns a few weeks ago, and kept two for himself, a 9 mm handgun and a .22 caliber handgun.
With a search warrant, investigators later removed two iPhones and two laptops from the home, that contained videos of sex acts and explicit text-messages, including discussions about potentially selling the videos.
When Ahrens was arrested, marijuana and meth were found in her possession. Hunter Drefahl also told investigators that he had recently used crystal meth.
Sign up for our Daily Update & Weekend Update email newsletters!
Get the latest news, sports, weather and more delivered right to your inbox.