Arrest made in alleged 'black magic' sexual assault

  TOMBALL, TX (KTRK) -- The search for a 60-year-old man accused of rape in Tomball has ended in his arrest. And now, the victim's family is speaking about the crime and how the man was finally captured.

Mario Munoz-Verudes is accused of assaulting a 17-year-old after claiming he could help her with black magic. According to the father of that teen girl, the man wanted for rape had been hiding from police not far from where the alleged rape took place back on September 25.

The father, who we're not identifying, says he knew Munoz-Verudes was hiding out in the woods behind the home and waited for him in an abandon house overnight. His son helped explain to us what happened.

"All of the fathers and mothers that have children, if they were to be violated, they would all feel the same," said the son. "Angry, mad and we wouldn't rest until we found the man."

According to police, the sexual assault happened at a home where Munoz-Verudes was renting a room from the owner. According to the girl's father, after finally finding Munoz-Verudes, they got into a physical altercation.

"He took out a knife and tried to stab my dad and that made him angry and what my dad did, he attacked him," said the son.

The girl's father tells us he was able to call police after the fight. Police arrested Munoz-Verudes early Saturday morning.

Police say Munoz-Verudes claimed he knew black magic and told the girl he would get rid of her bad spirits. This was allegedly his way to lure the girl into his home.

"Proclaimed himself to be a religious man, attended church regularly, supposedly, and was able to do some witchcraft or some spells," said Detective Ron McGullion with the Tomball Police Department.

Munoz-Verudes is facing a charge of rape. At this point, it's unclear when his next court appearance will be.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Four more sentenced in sexual assault of Cleveland girl

  LIBERTY, TX -- Four men who pleaded guilty in the repeated sexual assault of an 11-year-old Texas girl were each sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison, terms they agreed to in deals with prosecutors.

Their sentencing hearings came after another man charged in the 2010 case chose to go to trial and was convicted and sentenced last month to 99 years in prison. Legal experts said his harsh punishment probably prompted the four sentenced Friday to plead guilty and will likely mean the seven defendants with cases still pending will seek their own plea deals.

Sentenced Friday were: Timothy Ellis, 20; his cousin, Rayford Ellis Jr., 21; Kelvin King, 23; and Jared McPherson, 20. All had pleaded guilty earlier this month to aggravated sexual assault of a child, and each must register as a sex offender once released from prison.

Rayford Ellis also pleaded guilty to manslaughter in a 2008 case, while King pleaded guilty to another aggravated sexual assault charge in a 2009 case involving an attack on a different girl. Each received 15 years for those charges and will serve those sentences at the same time as the ones for assaulting the 11-year-old.

Each defendant was allowed to hug family members before being taken away by authorities. All except for Rayford Ellis had been free on bail. Relatives of the defendants declined to comment after the hearings.

Defense attorneys and prosecutors also declined to comment, citing a gag order in the case.

During his sentencing hearing, King told the judge he was unhappy with his attorney, Jerry Andress, and his plea deal.

"I feel like, well, my lawyer really didn't talk about the case," King said.

Afterward, King's father, Kevin King, and Andress argued outside the courtroom about the sentence. Both men declined to comment to reporters.

Prosecutors say the girl, now 13, was sexually assaulted on at least five occasions by 20 men and boys in the Southeast Texas town of Cleveland, about 45 miles northeast of Houston. The girl was 11 years old during the assaults from mid-September through early December 2010. Police began investigating that December after a classmate of the girl's told a teacher he had seen cellphone video of men having sex with her.

All six juveniles and six of the 14 adults charged, including those sentenced Friday, pleaded guilty. The only defendant to opt for a trial, Eric McGowen, was convicted and sentenced last month to 99 years in prison, but he wasn't in court to face his punishment. McGowen, who had been free on bail, skipped out during a break on the first day of testimony, which included the girl's tearful recounting of the assaults and McGowen's role in them. He was arrested two weeks later in Houston.

The four men sentenced Friday accepted their plea deals after McGowen was tried and convicted.

Legal experts said Friday the seven adult defendants who still have cases pending are probably going to avoid trial after seeing what happened with McGowen.

"Unless one of the remaining co-defendants has something brand new, we are not going to see any more trials from this point forward," said Grant Scheiner, a Houston criminal defense attorney not involved in the case.

Joel Androphy, another Houston attorney not connected to the case, said a 99-year prison sentence for one defendant would definitely scare his co-defendants into pleading guilty. But Androphy said he believes at least one of the remaining defendants will probably decide to take his chances at trial.

"Trials are a roll of the dice. You have to weigh it all and decide how to handle it," the attorney said.

(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Police make arrest in series of sexual assaults in SW Houston

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A suspected serial rapist is behind bars accused of attacking at least three women all at the same apartment complex in southwest Houston.

The details of this case are so disturbing that we cannot share most of what was read in court. Prosecutors read the horrific details of seven charges against Sedrick Johnson, 20.

They say he violently robbed and raped three different women at The Mills apartments, forcing them at gunpoint into a vacant unit for the alleged assaults.

A fourth victim fought and escaped without being raped, but was seriously injured.

Prosecutors say DNA evidence from the three rape victims matches Johnson's DNA, which was in the CODIS database because it was collected while Johnson was in prison for burglary.

Crime lab supervisor Courtney Head said, "We put one case into CODIS on Friday at about noon and approximately two hours later we got a hit."

Johnson was recently paroled after serving less than half of his three year sentence and also has a prior theft conviction.

Police say the crimes happened May 20, May 22 and June 3, with two attacks occurring the same day. Three of the four victims visually identified Johnson as their attacker.

Now at The Mills apartments security walks the grounds around the clock, surveillance cameras are rolling and Houston police have a visible presence. This is new and all reassuring to residents.

Johnson's girlfriend, who would not show her face on camera, believes he is innocent.

"I know the whole time he's been with me. We don't have time to do anything. All we do is work and go home," she said. "They're not true and I have proof that they're not true because we were home at the time."

Prosecutors say what Johnson allegedly did to these women was beyond violent, calling it "inhuman."

"Very animalistic, his tendencies are very similar," said prosecutor Alison Baimbridge. "The methodology, you could say, with which he used time after time with these women, is something that a normal human couldn't fathom, so if you think someone has the audacity to treat another human with that amount of disrespect, it's something that breaks your heart. It's unimaginable."

Johnson was denied bond and given a court-appointed attorney. He goes back to court on August 2.

Police are still looking for an accomplice, who acted as a lookout. They say they have some good leads.

"Each one of those women will never forget them, they will live them in their dreams and in their nightmares forever," Baimbridge said.

Several community activists, including Quanell X, got involved by handing out flyers, which may have helped with the arrest.

Johnson lives around the corner from the apartment complex and has lived there since April.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Elderly man charged with sexual assault now facing child porn charges

Theogil F. Cuttler, 73, is charged with sexual assault of a child under 17 years of age

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- An elderly man already facing charges of sexually assaulting a teenage boy is now facing additional charges including child pornography.

In May, Theogil F. Cuttler, 73, was accused of sexually assaulting a teenage boy who was doing odd jobs around his house. Court documents state on May 16, a 15-year-old boy who was an acquaintance of Cuttler's went to his Webster residence to do some odd jobs for money, when the boy says Cuttler told him that he could make an extra $5 for engaging in a sex act.

Now Cuttler is facing a charge of sexual performance by a child and a charge of possession and promotion of child pornography. According to court documents, a 15-year-old boy told Webster police that Cuttler photographed and took video recordings of him nude in return for small amounts of money.

A search warrant executed on May 18 at Cuttler's residence discovered a digital camera containing many photos and videos of the boy as well as multiple other young boys, court documents show.

Bond has been set at $50,000 for each of the two new felony charges.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Gospel musician accused of aggravated sexual assault of child

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A gospel musician who has performed at various churches in our area has been arrested for sexually assaulting a young girl. The alleged assault happened at the Zion Watchtower Baptist Church in Richmond.

According to the arrest warrant, a 13-year-old girl states that 42-year-old Rodney Marcus Grimsley, a guitar player who would perform at churches around Fort Bend and Harris counties, assaulted her. It allegedly happened between services last Sunday. He saw the girl, according to investigators, standing outside with other children.

Chief Deputy Craig Brady of the Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office said, "They were outside playing. He struck up a conversation with her and got her to go back inside the facility for a few minutes and that was enough."

The warrant states that the she followed him into a room inside the church where the alleged assault took place. Afterward, Grimsley and the girl are said to have exchanged cell phone numbers. Then came the Facebook chats with Grimsley, which the girl's mother discovered.

"The mother picked up on some of the conduct that she was doing on Facebook and inappropriate comments, and that's when she got involved and notified us," Brady said.

Grimsley was arrested Wednesday night at his home. He has children of his own, according to the sheriff's office. And according to the chief deputy, he didn't deny the allegation.

"Mr. Grimsley has admitted his actions involving the girl," Brady said. "He has confessed to the offense and is currently incarcerated on $175,000 bond."

But Grimsley's fiance, Monica Allen, says she's been with him for nine years and can't believe the allegations.

"Rodney is always talking about God and he's always willing to help somebody," she said. "He's that person that if you are stuck on the street, he's going to pull over and help you."

Allen says she hasn't talked to him since he was arrested, so she is waiting to hear from him.

"I pray for him, wherever he is. If he is seeing this, I pray the angels protect you and I pray that God reveals the truth," she said.

Investigators are asking parents who attend churches where Grimsley may have performed to talk to their children to see if there may be other cases.

Grimsley is being held on $175,000 bond at the Fort Bend County Jail.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

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Harris County deputy constable accused of sexual assault of a child

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- It was his duty to uphold the law. But now, a Harris County Precinct 5 deputy constable is behind bars, accused of sexually assaulting a child.

Deputy Jeremy English was arrested Friday outside of a hospital. Authorities say a teen is accusing him of sexually assaulting her when she was 14-years old.

That teenager is a relative of the deputy constable. Now instead of reporting to work like he was suppossed to, English found himself in a court of law where a judge outlined the charges against him.

As a Precinct 5 deputy constable, English is supposed to uphold the law. Now he's accused of breaking it. The 28-year-old peace officer went before a judge to face three counts of sexual assault of a child and one count of online solicitation of a minor.

The alleged victim is now 17, but prosecutors say she was a minor -- just 14 years old when she and English first engaged in sexual activity. Investigators say she told a relative. The allegations were then reported to the authorities. Harris County Sheriff's Office investigators arrested English Friday afternoon while he was working his second job as a security officer at North Cypress Medical Center.

No one answered the door at English's northwest Harris County apartment. English has worked patrol for Precinct 5 for almost four years. The charges against him may put his career in jeopardy.

"Right now, Deputy English is relieved of duty without pay pending the outcome of the investigation. We will help the sheriff's department any way we can with their investigation," said Lt. Warren Steffenauer with the Precinct 5 Harris County Constable's Office.

English's bond has been set at $80,000. We called his wife for a comment and are awaiting a response.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Massage therapist charged with sexual assault of client

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A massage therapist is facing charges after allegedly sexually violating a client during her massage.

Omar Prado Ruiz, 34, is charged with felony sexual assault. According to court documents, on May 17, Ruiz was giving a massage to a client at Massage Heights in the 13400 block of Briar Forest. The client said she had requested Ruiz, as she had on numerous previous occasions.

The woman told police that about 45 minutes into the massage, Ruiz began touching her in areas that made her uncomfortable and then he sexually assaulted her. She immediately sat up and demanded he leave the room.

The woman said Ruiz left, but re-entered the room while she was dressing and begged her not to tell anyone for fear of losing his job. The woman obtained a sexual assault exam the same day.

Bond has been set at $30,000 in the case.

(Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Man wanted for continued sexual abuse of child

Carlos Moreno Depaz is charged with one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child and a warrant was issued for his arrest with a $30,000 bond

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Law enforcement officials are asking for the public's help in finding a man who is wanted for continuous sexual abuse of a child.

The 14-year-old female victim disclosed to child abuse investigators and forensic interviewers at the Children's Assessment Center that Carlos Moreno Depaz had sexually abused her numerous times while at a residence in Houston. The girl stated the abuse began when she was 11 years old. Depaz would touch her in a sexual manner. She said the abuse continued until the victim was approximately 13 years old. Depaz is charged with one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child and a warrant was issued for his arrest with a $30,000 bond. Depaz, 42, is a Hispanic male, 5 foot 6 and weighs 185 pounds. He has black hair, brown eyes with a medium complexion. His last know address is near the 1000 block of Hanks in Houston. Crime Stoppers will pay up to $5,000 for any information called in to the 713-222-TIPS (8477) or submitted online at www.crime-stoppers.org that leads to the filing of felony charges or arrest of Carlos Moreno Depaz in this case. Tips can also be sent by text message. Text TIP610 plus your tip to CRIMES (274637). All tipsters remain anonymous. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) 

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