Local 33-year-old man charged with rape of a teenage girl
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IDAHO FALLS – A local man was charged with multiple felonies after being accused of raping a teenage girl.
Juan Manuel Hernandez, 33, was charged with three counts of felony rape of a victim who is 16 or 17 years of age.
On May 15, Idaho Falls Police officers received a tip that Hernandez had been having an illegal sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.
When officers interviewed the victim, she declined to give them Hernandez’s name but described what the inside of his home and bedroom looked like.
According to police reports, the victim allowed officers to look through her phone, where they eventually identified Hernandez.
On May 19, officers interviewed Hernandez, who confessed to having sex with the victim “at least twice” while knowing she was under 18.
Hernandez allowed the officer to look around his home, which matched the victim’s descriptions.
He later told officers that he “probably had sex with (the victim) more than two times” and said he didn’t “keep track.”
A warrant was issued for Hernandez’s arrest on Tuesday, and he was booked into the Bonneville County Jail with a bond of $100,000.
Though Hernandez has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.
A no-contact order was issued for the victim on Friday, and Hernandez is expected to appear for a preliminary hearing on June 30.