DARLINGTON — A group of men charged with sex offenses in Lafayette County are seeing some of their cases called in Circuit Court and many of the eight identified so far face years in prison if convicted.
According to court documents, police used text messages and posts on the social media app Snapchat to link some of the men to the alleged assaults, with the offenses occurring over the last few years.
Darlington Police characterized the alleged assaults as “isolated incidents between a small group of men and girls who knew each other,” although documents cited do not provide information on how or if the assaults are connected, according to the reports.
In one instance, a young girl was picked up at Rosary Park prior to allegedly being assaulted, and in another, a victim was allegedly given a vape device and alcohol.
The first alleged assault of a child victim cited in the documents occurred in early November 2022 and the most recent incident allegedly occurred in March of 2023.
Here is a list of defendants accused thus far and the status of their cases. The men were from Darlington unless otherwise noted:
● Jose Hernandez-Hernandez, 28, is charged with two felony counts of sexual assault with a child under 13, use of a computer facilitate a sex crime, and other offenses. He was released on $5,000 bond. He was scheduled for a Jan. 16 appearance in Lafayette County Circuit Court.
● Jose Noel Lopez-Ortiz, 31, is charged with second-degree sexual assault of a child. Bond for him also was set at $5,000. He failed to appear in court in April 2023 and has an arrest warrant issued. Court records do not show any pending court dates.
● Javier Mora-Cervantes, 49, is charged with felony soliciting a child for prostitution. A warrant was issued for Mora-Cervantes last October, and he has not appeared in court since.
● Ruben Hernandez Alarcon, 25, pleaded guilty late last year to a single felony count of repeated sexual assault of the same child. He was sentenced to nine years in prison on the charge last December.
● Ruben Antonio Lanza-Montoya, 28, who lives in Belmont, was charged with first degree sexual assault of child under 13. He has pleaded not guilty and was scheduled for his next appearance in court on Jan. 17. He also was given a $5,000 bond.
● Jorge Edgardo Lopez-Murillo, 19, is charged with two counts of felony first degree child sexual assault. His bond was set at $10,000 and a warrant was issued for his arrest last December.
● Alexander T. Ortez-Martinez, 23, is charged with felony repeated sexual assault of the same child. The bond for the Platteville defendant was set at $20,000. His next court appearance on the charge is scheduled for Feb. 21.
● Bartolo Alegra-Mollendio, 57, is charged with two counts of felony exposing genitals to a child, felony intimidation of victim/use of a dangerous weapon, and two counts of first-degree child sexual assault — one charge for a child under 12 and another for a child under 13. Bond for him was set at $50,000. Alegra-Mollendio has pleaded not guilty to all charges. His next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 21 in Lafayette County Circuit Court.