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Last week, prosecutors asked a U.S. District Court Judge to overturn a Magistrate Judge’s decision. The decision was to grant pretrial release to a man accused of sexually assaulting an underage cruise ship passenger.
In the Assistant U.S. Attorney’s filing, she labeled the 19-year-old defendant as a “dangerous serial child predator.” The young man has confessed to having sex with a 13-year-old on a cruise ship and to having sex with two additional minors. He also admits to forcing another girl into sex.
The defendant’s attorney said that the Magistrate Judge established strict conditions for his release to ensure that the public is protected while the case proceeds. He insisted that his client was not going to be left alone. According to the lawyer, his mother and stepfather will make sure that he follows the order so that there would be no problem.
In the complaint that was just recently released, the public got its first detailed look at the allegations formed against the 19-year-old.
According to an affidavit filed by the FBI, while on a cruise ship the man approached a young girl while she was on her way to dinner. He made plans to meet her later. The affidavit clearly says that she revealed her age as 13 to the man. The defendant admitted to having sex with this girl when he brought her back to a cabin he shared with his siblings. The siblings were not present during the affair. The defendant told investigators that the sex was consensual, but the young girl told authorities that she did not want to have sex and that the man hurt her.
“The affidavit also said other passengers reported the defendant spent an abnormal amount of time in Circle C – the section of the ship reserved for children between 12 and 14,” reports a New York Injury Lawyer.
The 19-year-old faces separate sexual battery charges involving another 13-year-old girl that he met through Facebook. After “friending” her, even though he did not know her, he began texting her and eventually showed up at her house when she was playing with a soccer ball. The girl rebuffed his efforts to kiss her and go inside the house. He returned on another day and sent her a threatening message which prompted her to leave the house with him. He then drove the minor to a nearby location and raped her. The defendant admitted to investigators that he coerced the girl into having sex with him. It is not uncommon in these instances to see multiple charges against a defendant, which can result in a criminal charge, as well a civil actions for personal injury to the victim.
He also confessed to having sex with another girl who is in the seventh grade and to forcing a former girlfriend to have sex after he became angry with her.
When others take advantage of you, it is your obligation to make sure all legal measures are taken against your attacker. Contact Stephen Bilkis and Associates for guidance and a free consultation.