A Texas man was arrested and charged after allegedly recording an alleged sexual assault interaction of two toddlers in a popular shopping mall, allegedly involving at least six other men, FBI documents say, according to Fox Houston.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) charged Arthur Hector Fernandez III, 29, with sexual exploitation of children after the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCE) found video footage of the alleged incident on the dark web, Fox Houston reported. (RELATED: Former Elementary School Teacher Gets Probation After Being Accused Of Sexually Assaulting 4th Graders)
The case reportedly included four videos with two male toddlers between them, both within the age range of two to three years old, allegedly being sexually assaulted by multiple men within different settings, according to FBI documents. One video description said Fernandez allegedly recorded another male who was allegedly assaulting one of the male toddlers on what appeared to be a changing table in a public restroom, according to the documents, Fox Houston reported.
Toddler sexually assaulted in bathroom by former Galleria employee: FBI https://t.co/4N9FpGhKsd
— FOX26Houston (@FOX26Houston) January 11, 2024
The FBI had been able to identify Fernandez through the relatives of the two toddlers, honing in on the clothing the children had been wearing during the alleged incident, the documents said, Fox Houston reported. Relatives of the toddlers additionally said they allegedly recognized the silver bracelets Fernandez had been wearing in the video, confirming their claims, the documents revealed, according to the outlet.
Following the identification of Fernandez, FBI Houston carried out a search warrant on the alleged suspect’s house, claiming they had found lot-top Converse All-Star shoes similar to those seen in the videos, according to the outlet. (RELATED: Local Rap Artist Allegedly Held Woman Captive For Years, Sexually Abusing Her In Garage: Police)
Fernandez had previously worked at the popular Galleria Mall in Houston, Texas, where one of the toddler’s parents had been employed at, according to Fox Houston. Court documents reportedly said on May 6, 2023 the parent of one of the toddlers was forced to bring the child to the mall after being called in and unable to find childcare. Upon their arrival, Fernandez had allegedly offered to watch the toddler, the documents said, according to Fox Houston.
The parent of the other toddler had described a similar alleged incident with Fernandez, claiming he had once again offered to watch and walk around the mall with the child after she had brought him to work one day, according to the documents, Fox Houston reported. Fernandez had allegedly watched the second child on two other occasions, once in December 2022 and another time in October 2023, the documents said, according to the outlet.
Authorities believe no less than one of the alleged incidents occurred within the public restrooms of the Galleria Mall, due to images of a changing table, according to USA Today.
“The evidence in this case is overwhelming and revolting,” the judge stated in a court order ensuring Fernandez would remain in police custody until trial, the outlet reported. “I cannot allow (him) to abuse any other minors and there are no conditions or combination of conditions that can alleviate a danger to the community. This is not a close call.”