ANGOLA, IN (WTVB) – A Coldwater man entered a plea of guilty in Steuben County Superior Court on March 13, 2023 to a charge of Voluntary Manslaughter which is a Level 2 Felony in Indiana.
31-year-old Steven Michael Restemayer was charged in connection with the death of 36-year-old Daniel J. Sheets of Fremont, Indiana in July of 2021. Restemayer was originally charged with murder.
According to Steuben County on line court records, a sentencing hearing was set for May 17, 2023 after the plea agreement was taken under advisement by Judge William Fee.
The plea agreement led to the cancellation of a five day jury trial which was scheduled to start May 22, 2023.
Sheets’ body was discovered on the property of a burned out residence along North County Road 675 East in Fremont Township by Sheriff’s deputies after he had been reported as missing.
During the initial crime scene search, Restemayer was found hiding in a camper next to the residence.
Restemayer was taken into custody on an outstanding DeKalb County, Indiana arrest warrant for failure to appear on a charge of carrying a handgun without a license and quickly became a person of interest.
He was still in the Steuben County Jail when an arrest warrant was issued for him in December of 2021.
Steuben County Sheriff Rodney Robinson said back in July of 2021 that the house fire neither caused nor contributed to Sheets’ death. He said in a press release issued at the time that as the missing persons investigation unfolded, it was learned that Sheets may have still been at or near the house just prior to or around the time of the fire.
The body was discovered thanks to the use of a Sheriff’s Department drone.
Comments