Oxnard man, 18, arrested for burglary, sexual assault of minor
OXNARD, Calif. (KABC) -- An 18-year-old Oxnard man was arrested early Tuesday, accused of burglarizing two residences and assaulting an 11-year-old girl in her bed. Now investigators want to know if there could be more potential victims.
"We deem those people that will go inside an occupied residence at night as some of the most serious and devious type of criminal behaviors, so we're very relieved that we've made this arrest," said Oxnard Police Commander Eric Sonstegard.
Luis Contreras, 18, was arrested after police say he broke into two homes in South Oxnard.
The first happened just before 2 a.m. on the 4900 block of Rose Avenue. Investigators say Contreras cut the screen on a window, entered the residence and ransacked the apartment before going upstairs to where the victim was sleeping with her 6-year-old brother.
"The suspect then went over to the 11-year-old female's bed and placed his hand over her mouth so she couldn't scream, and then proceeded to sexually assault her," said Sonstegard.
The girl fought back, finally scaring off the suspect, who left with a bag of stolen property.
As authorities were investigating that attack, police say Conteras struck again, this time on the 2100 block of Barnett Street.
"Really, really scary, because that could have been my child," said Brenda Torres. She and her family were sound asleep when the suspect quietly climbed in through an open window at their home.
"All of a sudden my husband jumps up and he starts yelling at someone, and I thought he was just dreaming or something, and he said, 'Oh, what are you doing in my room,'" said Torres.
Contreras ran from the house with a stolen cellphone. He was seen riding a bike in the neighborhood by an officer on patrol, and fit the suspect description, and he was arrested. Detectives say they found evidence linking him to the crimes.
They also believe the 18-year-old may be responsible for a series of incidents over the last year, including the attempted sexual assault of an 8-year-old girl. Police are checking DNA evidence collected from Contreras.
He was arrested and booked at the Ventura County Jail for two counts of residential burglary and forcible sexual assault of a minor under 14 years of age. Contreras' bail was set at $500,000.
Given his alleged crimes, police believe there may be other victims.
Police encourage anyone that has information about this incident or any related incidents to call the Oxnard Police at (805) 385-3921. If you wish to remain anonymous you may call the violent crimes hotline at (805) 982-7070 or Ventura County Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.
