TULSA, Okla. — A Tulsa man is facing several lewd molestation charges, and police some of the crimes were committed at a church he went to. Detectives say in 2019, a 15-year-old came forward and told police Asbiel Morales molested her when she was just 10 years old.
An arrest affidavit says the victim told police the assaults happened at a church Morales went to, and at his house. Tulsa Police Lt. Darin Ehrenreich says the allegations were investigated, but at that time, no charges were ever filed.
“Sometimes that can happen, regardless of how thorough an investigation is,” Ehrenrich said.
Since then, detectives say two more victims came forward and told police Morales molested them in 2017 and 2018. Court records show one of the victims told police that when she was 10, Morales raped her and punched her in the ribs several times. Morales was arrested on Monday and is now facing charges related to the original allegations and the recent ones. Ehrenrich says this case shows the importance of always filing police reports.
“When you look at the 2019 case, even though there wasn’t enough evidence to prove these allegations in court beyond a reasonable doubt, having that case on file and having additional people come forward allows us to have extra info in that case,” Ehrenrich said. “Which allowed us to reopen it and take a second look and allow the DA’s office to look at it again and file additional charges in that case as well.”
Morales is charged with three counts of lewd molestation.
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