A Clifton man sentenced last month to 45 years in state prison after pleading guilty to sexual misconduct offenses involving minors remains the subject of a criminal investigation in Cochise County, according to public records.
Edward Walter Stewart was transferred to the custody of the Arizona Department of Corrections on May 27 to serve three consecutive 15-year prison terms. He had remained in the Greenlee County jail in lieu of a $1,000,000 cash-only bond since his arrest in January.
Stewart, 40, came under suspicion when the Greenlee County Sheriff’s Office received information from a mandatory reporter that a child revealed being abused. Investigators eventually identified and interviewed multiple children who came into contact with Stewart.
The Greenlee County Attorney’s Office initially filed 19 felony charges against Stewart for a range of sexual offenses involving children. The plea deal Stewart signed May 3 admitted to attempted sexual conduct a minor in February 2013, May 2014, and August 2014.
By agreeing to a non-trial resolution, Stewart avoided the mandatory life sentence which would have been imposed if he was convicted at trial. He is also now eligible for release after 38 years although Stewart will have to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life wherever he lives.
The plea deal also ensured none of the children would have to testify.
Although Stewart is now in prison, he remains under investigation by the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office stemming from his time living near Sierra Vista and Tombstone.