MARION COUNTY, FL (352today.com) – The Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) announced the arrest of a wanted sexual offender as he was about to board a plane.
Authorities have been hot on the trail of 50-year-old Jose Luis Godinez-Rodriguez since January, when they received information that the Ocala resident sexually assaulted a juvenile victim. The victim told authorities that Godinez-Rodriguez molested her on “multiple occasions” and provided them with “detailed recollections” of the sexual abuse.
MCSO Major Crimes Detective Caitlin Hartigan then obtained an arrest warrant after failing to make contact with him.
Hartigan learned through investigation of another victim who had reportedly been sexually abused by Godinez-Rodriguez when she was a child.
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The victim, now an adult, recalled numerous incidents of sexual abuse by Godinez-Rodriguez that spanned “several years.” She told authorities that he became “very touchy” with her, then began to “expose himself” to her, before sexually battering and molesting her.
A month later, on February 25, the Warrants Division in the Marion County Jail notified Detective Hartigan that Godinez-Rodriguez was arrested while trying to board an early morning flight to Mexico at the Orlando International Airport.
Following his arrest, Godinez-Rodriguez was transported to the Marion County Jail, where he remains.
He is charged with Capital Sexual Battery, Sexual Battery by a Person in Custodial Authority, Lewd or Lascivious Conduct, Simple Battery, and four counts of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation.
Godinez-Rodriguez has previous run-ins with MCSO. His last arrest came in 2016 for driving with a suspended license.
MCSO detectives believe that Godinez-Rodriguez may have victimized other children. Anyone with information about other potential victims is asked to contact Detective Hartigan at (352) 368-3535
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