A Lubbock County grand jury has indicted a 39-year-old man arrested after a girl told her teachers she was sexually abused when he reportedly took her out of school without permission.
Arthur Soto is charged with a second-degree felony count of indecency with a child by sexual contact, which carries a punishment of two to 20 years in prison.
His charges stem from a Lubbock police investigation that began on April 16 after Lubbock ISD police officers received a report that a student at Roberts Elementary School was sexually abused by Soto after he had taken her out of school for a doctor’s appointment, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The girl reportedly told police that Soto began touching her inappropriately while he drove and she used her backpack to block his hands.
However, she said Soto continued to touch her and she began to yell at him to bring her back to school.
Investigators found video from the school’s security cameras that showed Soto, who was a “friend of the family” taking the girl from school.
Investigators also spoke with the girl’s mother who reportedly said her daughter told her that Soto had been molesting her.
The girl’s mother said Soto had been threatening her since filing the report.
The girl spoke to a forensic interviewer detailing multiple episodes of abuse during which Soto reportedly touched her inappropriately.
She said there were times Soto exposed his genitals to her and asked her to touch him, the affidavit states.
Investigators also found messages Soto reportedly sent the girl asking if he could “rub her leg again,” the affidavit states.
Meanwhile, investigators reached out to Soto, who reportedly told them he would give a statement when he got back into town but never did.
On May 21, the girl’s mother reported that her family members had reached out to her saying Soto had reportedly sent nude images on Snapchat to their daughters, the affidavit states.
A warrant for his arrest was issued the same day and he was arrested in the 1000 block of North Indiana Avenue, according to jail records.
He was booked into the Lubbock County Detention Center where he remains. His bond is set at $200,000.
Gabriel Monte is the criminal justice reporter for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal in Texas. Have a news tip for him? Email him at gmonte@lubbockonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock man accused of taking girl from school indicted on indecency charge
Reporting by Gabriel Monte, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Gabriel Monte, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal | USA TODAY Network
