Warrant issued for his arrest: Man on trial in domestic violence case cuts GPS bracelet; disappears



MILWAUKEE COUNTY -- Did he cut and run, when he was supposed to be in court? A man on trial for dangerous offenses is now nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, his trial went on without him.

Robert Dorgay



A jury in Milwaukee County on Wednesday, July 27th heard testimony in the case against 31-year-old Robert Dorgay -- even though Dorgay wasn't there to hear it himself.

"I had a warrant issued for Mr. Dorgay's arrest," Chad Schepp, Dorgay's parole officer said.

The trial started on Monday, July 25th, and Dorgay's parole officer testified that on Tuesday -- Dorgay disappeared.

"At the time, Mr. Dorgay was on GPS monitoring," Schepp said.

Schepp testified that he received an alert indicating Dorgay's GPS device had been tampered with. A monitoring center traced the bracelet to a cemetery on Lincoln Avenue.



"The device was in a row of gravestones on the other side of the fence within the cemetery," Schepp said.

The strap had been cut, and now, Dorgay is nowhere to be found.

Chad Schepp



Nathan Opland-Dops, attorney for Dorgay questioned Schepp in court:

"You don't know how it got into that cemetery, right?"

"Correct," Schepp said.

"You don't know how it got cut. Correct?"

"Correct," Schepp said.

"And you have not heard from Mr. Dorgay to explain it one way or another?"

"I have not," Schepp said.

Dorgay is charged with strangulation and suffocation, false imprisonment and sexual assault.

Sleep Inn



According to a criminal complaint, he met a woman at the Sleep Inn on South 6th Street and confronted her about a past domestic violence incident. The complaint says he choked her and forced her to write a recant letter while threatening to kill her and her daughter.

The prosecuting attorney pointed out a state statute that says if a defendant shows up for the beginning of a trial and then disappears, the trial goes on without him or her.

Robert Dorgay



Dorgay doesn't need to be present for a verdict to be read.

Dorgay forfeited a cash bond of $7,500 when he ran. A bench warrant was issued for his arrest.

Meanwhile, his trial continues Thursday, July 28th.