Manteca Man Accused Of Sodomizing 6-Year-Old At Daycare
MANTECA (CBS13) — A Manteca man is accused of sodomizing a 6-year-old girl at his girlfriend's daycare.
Eric Perez, 44, is behind bars, while the daycare owner is staying silent.
Perez was booked on multiple sex charges including lewd acts and sodomy with a child. Investigators say he was alone with the girl while the daycare owner stepped out.
Now trained forensic specialists are in the process of interviewing more children who attend the daycare.
Manteca Police were first called to a hospital where doctors were treating a 6-year-old girl they say was sexually molested.
"The mother told officers that the daughter had made a statement to her that she was molested," said Lt. Anthony Souza.
Detectives say Perez allegedly sexually abused the girl while left unsupervised for about half an hour at Jeanette's Daycare on the 100 block of North Veach Avenue. Four other children, ages 1 to 7, were at the daycare at the time.
"We'll be conducting interviews with the four other children to determine if they are victims or witnessed any of the activity that may have occurred," Souza said.
Detectives believe the suspect committed the crimes when his girlfriend, the owner of Jeanette's Daycare, stepped out. Detectives say the in-home daycare is licensed to Jeanette Aldana.
Neighbors say they haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary there in the year it's been operating.
Police say the state licensing office may revoke the daycare's license over the incident. For now, they're focused on evaluating the five children who were at the daycare.
A 3-year-old child the suspect shares with the daycare owner will undergo a forensic analysis.
In the meantime, Perez remains locked up at the San Joaquin County Jail on $2 million bail.