Documents: Girl sexually abused in back of car while mother in front seat - East Idaho News
Rexburg

Documents: Girl sexually abused in back of car while mother in front seat

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REXBURG — After years of alleged sexual abuse, a teenage victim recently came forward and a man has been arrested and criminally charged.

Court documents show 45-year-old Fernando Lopez-Susano is believed to have repeatedly sexually abused the girl for years and, on at least one occasion, an incident took place in a vehicle while the victim’s mother was in the front seat.

Near the end of August, a Madison County detective was asked to respond to a local school for a report of a teenage girl who had been the victim of sexual abuse.

According to documents, the victim “wanted to speak to a detective about an ongoing sexual crime” being committed by a man her mother knew.

The victim told investigators that the last time she had been abused was in mid-June.

She said Lopez-Susano kissed her on the ear and grasped her chest while she was lying on a bed. She said that Lopez-Susano attempted to put his hands under the covers, but the victim left before things progressed.

The victim told police that Lopez-Susano inappropriate advances began while she was in sixth grade. She recalled that he asked her to sit on his lap and “it got worse from that point on.”

The alleged behavior happened at least twice a week for several years.

She told police that on multiple occasions she was forced to touch Lopez-Susano inappropriately. One on occasion, she said she was forced to touch Lopez-Susano’s genitals through a window while he stood outside of a car the victim was in. Her mother was allegedly sitting in the front seat at the time.

Following the report, police arrested Lopez-Susano and Madison County prosecutors charged him with felony lewd conduct with child under 16 and felony sexual abuse of a child.

District Judge Gregory Moeller set Lopez-Susano’s bail at $200,000 and he is being held at the Madison County Jail.

Court records show that Lopez-Susano has been accused of sexually abusing children before, but police were unable to complete a previous investigation as Lopez-Susano had left Mexico.

EastIdahoNews.com was unable to reach Madison County Prosecutor Sid Brown for comment on the case.

It is unclear whether the mother is facing any charges related to the case.

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