Policeman sexually assaulted 4-year-old child of undocumented immigrant, sheriff says

A sheriff’s deputy in South Texas has been accused of sexually assaulting the four-year-old daughter of an undocumented immigrant.

Jose Nunez, a 47-year-old detention officer with the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, is accused of threatening the young girl’s mother with deportation if she were to report him, authorities said.

On Sunday, the Bexar County sheriff, Javier Salazar, said investigators arrested Mr Nunez on a charge of “super aggravated sexual assault” of a child.

Mr Salazar said: “The details of the case are quite frankly heartbreaking, disturbing, disgusting and infuriating all at the same time”.

Mr Nunez, a 10-year veteran of the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office who worked at the county jail, was arrested early on Sunday while he was off-duty after the mother, who is from Guatemala, took her daughter to a local fire station to seek help.

The sheriff said authorities believe Mr Nunez is related to the child victim.

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ANI via Reuters 30/50 22 May 2018 People demonstrate in Paris during a nationwide day protest by French public sector employees and public servants against the overhauls proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron, calling them an "attack" by the centrist leader against civil services as well as their economic security. AFP/Getty 31/50 21 May 2018 Newly appointed Catalan president Quim Torra arrives to visit jailed Catalan separatist politicians at the Estremera jail near Madrid. AFP/Getty 32/50 20 May 2018 Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro casts his vote during the presidential elections in Caracas. Maduro was seeking a second term in power. AFP/Getty 33/50 19 May 2018 Channelized lava emerges on Kilauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone on Hawaii. The USGS said on its website that "a fast-moving pahoehoe lava flow that emerged from fissure 20... continues to flow southeast," with the quickest of three "lobes" progressing at 230 yards (210 meters) per hour. 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Four children are among seven people that were found dead at a rural property in Osmington, near Margaret River. Detectives are investigating the incident, which was said to be treated as a murder-suicide, media reported. Two firearms were found at the scene, Western Australia Police said. EPA 42/50 10 May 2018 Missiles rise into the sky as Israeli missiles hit air defense position and other military bases, in Damascus, Syria. The Israeli military on Thursday said it attacked "dozens" of Iranian targets in neighboring Syria in response to an Iranian rocket barrage on Israeli positions in the Golan Heights, in the most serious military confrontation between the two bitter enemies to date. Reuters 43/50 9 May 2018 Iranian MPs burning a US flag in the parliament in Tehran. Iran said it will hold talks with signatories to a nuclear deal after US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the accord, which it branded "psychological warfare". 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A local state of emergency has been declared after Mount Kilauea erupted near residential areas, forcing mandatory evacuation of about 1,700 citizens from their nearby homes. The crater's floor collapsed on 01 May and is since then continuing to erode its walls and generating huge explosions of ashes. Several earthquakes have been recorded in the area where the volcanic eruptions continue, including a 6.9 magnitue earthquake which struck the area on 4 May. EPA/PARADISE HELICOPTERS 47/50 5 May 2018 Russian police carrying struggling opposition leader Alexei Navalny at a demonstration against President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Thousands of demonstrators denouncing Putin's upcoming inauguration into a fourth term gathered in the capital's Pushkin Square. AP 48/50 4 May 2018 Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks at an event to mark Karl Marx’s 200th birthday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. 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Mr Salazar said the young girl had been experiencing physical pain and “made an outcry” which sparked her mother’s decision to go to the fire station. He said the little girl is now safe.

The abuse was likely to have occurred for several months and maybe even years and there may have been other victims, Mr Salazar said.

“The mother of this little girl is an undocumented immigrant, my understanding is that this suspect utilised that to his advantage to place the mother in fear that she would be deported if she did report it,” the sheriff said.

Mr Salazar said the criminal charge carries a minimum 25-year sentence. He said investigators were working to make sure the mother is given protected status pending the outcome of the case, but chose not to comment on the residence status of the child.

“My objective is to separate this person from the agency as soon as possible,” Mr Salazar said.

Super aggravated sexual assault of a child happens if the victim is under the age of 14. It also occurs if there are other factors such as serious bodily injury or if a deadly weapon is present.

Immigrant rights groups have argued Texas Senate Bill 4, which was passed in May last year, has fostered a feeling of fear among undocumented immigrants about approaching local law enforcement to report crimes.

While the law’s supporters say it is designed to protect people by enforcing laws already in place, it also allows local authorities to investigate whether a person is legally in the US.

The law punishes local officials who implement policies which limit immigration enforcement or stop police from questioning the immigration status of people they detain or arrest.

The Texas Senate Bill 4 has been the subject of several legal challenges, but it continues to remains in effect.

Mr Nunez is due in court on Monday afternoon.