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Raymondville Police Urge Sexual Assault Victims to Step Forward

6 years 9 months 2 weeks ago Wednesday, July 05 2017 Jul 5, 2017 July 05, 2017 5:09 PM July 05, 2017 in News

RAYMONDVILLE – Police arrested two people in connection with the prostitution and sexual assault of a child in Raymondville.

Monica Garcia, 30, is charged with compelling prostitution, trafficking of persons for sexual exploitation and sexual assault of a child. Raul Arevalo Jr., 77, is charged with sexual assault of a child.

Authorities said their arrest could lead to a larger human trafficking problem. 

Police said an undocumented teen reported the assault last week. Raymondville Police Department detective Denise Ledesma said the minor told officers she was forced to have sex for money. 

The investigation led authorities to Garcia and Arevalo. But Ledesma said there could be more victims in this case.

"We just want all victims, if there are any victims. It has been brought to our attention that there might be several, but they're afraid to come forward because of their status," she said. "That is not something we're looking for into. We just want to go ahead and help each victim out."

The detective said the department is short-handed to handle the case. It's the reason why they asked the FBI to step in.

FBI spokesperson Michelle Lee told CHANNEL 5 NEWS they're prepared to assist Raymondville police.

Garcia and Arevalo are being held on a $130,000 bond and $50,000 bond, respectively.

Anyone with information on the case can call Raymondville police at 956-689-2441.

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