Bronx Man Accused Of Repeatedly Raping Girl At Day Care Center Run By His Wife
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A Bronx man is accused of repeatedly raping a young girl at a day care center run by his wife.
Alberto Hernandez, 60, was arrested Wednesday and charged with multiple counts of rape and sexual assault.
Police said the 13-year-old victim told a school counselor she was raped by Hernandez between the ages of six and 10 years old.
The girl attended Maria Cortez Daycare, which is owned by Hernandez's wife and run out of their Kingsbrige home. Cortez has not been charged.
"He was a nice man, very calm, very nice man, pretty quiet though, always a helpful guy in times of need," said a man who lives across the hall. "I would've never known. I'm totally shocked to this, oblivious to this."
A woman who identified herself as Cortez's daughter told CBS2's Aundrea Cline-Thomas her mother has been married to Hernandez for nearly 20 years. She said the allegations are hard to believe and are still under investigation.
"Very sorry for that little girl. I hope she gets better," resident Mark Moore said.
"That's very sad, that's very sad," said resident Eddy Lamar.
Other than a 2017 violation stemming from incomplete paperwork, the day care has been inspected by the state every year since 2015 with no major issues.
"OCFS takes child care health and safety enforcement extremely seriously and we are appalled at these allegations. OCFS is immediately suspending and moving to revoke the child care provider's license pending the outcome of an investigation into the matter," New York City's Office of Children and Family Services said in a statement.
The day care was closed Thursday, but the family said they plan to reopen.
Meanwhile, police are investigating whether there were more victims.
