Terri Sanginiti and James Fisher

The News Journal

Well-known, former Baltimore Ravens cheerleader Molly Shattuck's Instagram-fueled attraction to a 15-year-old boy led to her arrest Wednesday and charges of third-degree rape and unlawful sexual conduct, according to Delaware State Police.

The exchange was further prompted by the woman's son who encouraged the victim to text his mother because "she is obsessed with you," police said in court documents.

Shattuck, 47, estranged wife of former Constellation Energy CEO Mayo Shattuck III, was indicted Monday by a Sussex County grand jury on two counts of third-degree rape, four counts of unlawful sexual contact and three counts of providing alcohol to minors, said Sgt. Paul Shavack.

The relationship began at the end of May when Shattuck spotted photos of the teen on Instagram and posted a comment about them, according to information contained in an application for a search warrant.

After the victim replied thank you in a private message through Instagram, Shattuck's son sent the victim his mother's cell phone number, saying, "You should text my Mom, she is obsessed with you," according to court records.

The budding friendship continued through the summer and progressed from chats about daily life to provocative talk and text messages into trysts in the rear seat of Shattuck's Cadillac Escalade where the two would make out and grope each other, court records said.

It culminated Labor Day weekend in Bethany Beach where Shattuck had rented a house on Dukes Road for her children and their friends, who also included the victim. She provided beer to at least three of the minors and engaged in some sexual acts with the 15-year-old victim, unbeknownst to the other children in the house, police said.

On Sept. 26, state police detectives were contacted by police in Baltimore County, Maryland who reported a 15-year-old boy had been involved in an inappropriate relationship with a woman, later identified as Shattuck, in Delaware's jurisdiction, Shavack said.

An affidavit for a search warrant of Shattuck's Blythewood Road residence obtained by The News Journal outlines how the two first met in late June while the teen was visiting a friend in her neighborhood. That meeting ended with a hug but no other physical contact, court records said.

The seduction continued from there to meetings in the Escalade at an AMC movie theater in Columbia, Maryland, and at a parking lot at a middle school in Mount Airy, Maryland.

Through the month of July, while the teen attended summer school, Shattuck picked him up for lunch "five or six times" and drove to a parking garage where they would "talk and eat and then get in the back of the car and kiss or make out," police said in court records. During one of these incidents, Shattuck allegedly touched the teen's penis.

"Between their encounters, Shattuck asked for pictures via text message" and he would send pictures of himself shirtless and one in his underwear, the victim told police.

Over Labor Day weekend, she allegedly performed oral sex on the victim while outside the home and later invited him to her bedroom where they each stripped down to their underwear and fondled each other, the documents show.

The victim told police Shattuck had offered to have sex with him, but he "decided to leave at that point and go back to the rooftop."

Later that morning, the victim's father picked him up and took him home.

In mid-September, Shattuck sent the teen pictures through Instagram of him taken at the beach over the Labor Day weekend with the other teenage house guests.

During the Sept. 28 interview with police, the teen told investigators he had not seen or talked to Shattuck since Labor Day.

The search warrant, executed October 1, led investigators to seize Shattuck's cell phone, computing and storage devices and external drives pertinent to the investigation. Detectives also specifically sought a pink lace bra and panties that the victim described her as wearing in the bedroom of her beach house.

According to the nine-count indictment, filed in Sussex County Superior Court, it states the sexual incident occurred Aug. 31 in Delaware where Shattuck and the teen exchanged in foreplay. Eventually, according to a police account in the search warrant, Shattuck said to the teen that if he wanted to have sex, she would.

Shattuck is also accused of purchasing alcohol for the boy and two other teens, all younger than 21.

Shattuck's attorneys would not discuss the charges after her arraignment.

"This is a difficult situation for everyone involved," one of her lawyers, Michelle Lipkowitz, said outside the courthouse. "That's all we have today."

Earlier this year, Shattuck released a book entitled, "Molly Shattuck Vibrant Living," a back-to-basics approach to embracing lifestyle changes and better health. She is well-known in Baltimore for her marriage to Mayo Shattuck III and her stint as the NFL's oldest cheerleader. She also participated in the reality show Secret Millionaire in 2008.

She is a prolific contributor to political candidates – one of the few political donors to give $5,000 to both the Obama and Romney campaigns in 2012. She also gave $5,000 to a Romney joint fundraising committee and $15,000 to an Obama joint committee. Federal Election Commission records note her occupation as "homemaker," "housewife," "spouse," and "self-employed."

In an unpublished 2012 interview with USA Today, Shattuck said she used the contributions to pitch her idea of "solutions-oriented presidential campaigns." Just like beauty pageant winners use their reign to bring awareness of a cause, Shattuck proposed that presidential candidates use part of their campaign war chests to sponsor a charity.

"If you think of all this money that's put into campaigns, none of it solves any problems," she said. "I thought about the idea for a long time." She described herself as a "very moderate Republican" and said she once worked on Capitol Hill for Rep. Doug Walgren, D-Pa.

In a society profile in The Baltimore Sun in March, Shattuck said there had been "no animosity" in her split with her husband, and said they still spent time together with their children.

"We are in a good place. Neither of us is in a serious relationship with another person," she told the Sun. "Who knows? Maybe we'll get back together someday."

Shattuck was released Wednesday following her arraignment after posting $84,000 secured bail.

Staff reporter Melissa Nann Burke and USA Today reporter Gregory Korte contributed to this story. Contact Terri Sanginiti at (302) 324-2771 or tsanginiti@delawareonline.com. Contact James Fisher at (302) 983-6772, on Twitter@JamesFisherTNJ or jfisher@delawareonline.com.