Woman arrested in child porn case

By FRANCISCO E. JIMENEZ
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com

A San Benito woman is sitting behind bars after allegedly sending sexually explicit photos of an infant girl to a sex offender in Corpus Christi.

Desiree Lee Padilla, 22, was arrested at her San Benito residence, located on the 2400 block of FM 803 on Friday, February 8, by the US Marshal Gulf Coast Violent Task Force with assistance from the Harlingen Police Department. Padilla is specifically accused of taking sexually provocative photographs of the infant and sending them to the Corpus Christi suspect via cell phone.

“Back in January (19), the Harlingen Police Department received notification from the US Marshal’s office,” said Sergeant Dave Osborne, HPD Public Information Officer. “They had been investigating a suspect; when he was arrested they noticed child pornography on his phone. They then realized that the photos were taken by a suspect in Harlingen.”

The identity of the suspect in the Corpus Christi area was not available as of presstime, but he was identified as a sex offender. According to Osborne, the US Marshal’s office contacted the Harlingen PD because it was determined that the pornographic photos were taken and sent in Harlingen.

“The agency contacted Harlingen PD and we were able to draft a warrant for (Padilla’s) arrest,” said Osborne. Padilla was magistrated on Saturday, February 9, for aggravated sexual assault of child, a first degree felony. She received a bond of $75,000 and is currently incarcerated at the Carrizales-Rucker Detention Center in Olmito.

“Because of the nature of the offense, because the photos were transmitted through a cellular phone, there’s a chance that the case could be picked up at the federal level,” said Osborne. “We submitted a report to the District Attorney’s office and they’ll handle case.”

Read this story in the Feb. 13 edition of the San Benito News, or subscribe to our E-Edition by clicking here.