Benton man charged with attempted statutory rape

A Benton, Missouri, man was arrested Tuesday on a charge of attempted statutory rape after he admitted he engaged in a sexual act with a 13-year-old girl, the Scott County Sheriff's Department reported Wednesday.

Dustin Sauceda, 20, is accused of following the girl into a bathroom and attempting to rape her, according to a probable-cause affidavit filed Wednesday by detective Jessica Martin of the Scott County Sheriff's Department.

According to the affidavit, the victim's mother came to the department Dec. 9 to report she had caught Sauceda trying to rape her daughter in a bathroom at her home.

The victim told police Sauceda had attacked her once earlier in the year, Martin wrote.

The girl said Sauceda grabbed her, dragged her into his bedroom and held her down on his bed, covering her mouth with one hand to keep her from screaming and holding her knees with the other so she couldn't kick him, Martin wrote.

The victim said while Sauceda was holding her down, she fell off the bed, waking a family member, Martin wrote.

The victim said Sauceda ran to the other side of the bedroom when the family member came in, Martin wrote.

Martin and a Cape Girardeau police officer arrested Sauceda shortly before 1 p.m. Tuesday at Southeast Hospital, where he had just been released, according to a news release from the Scott County Sheriff's Department.

Sauceda was taken to the Scott County Sheriff's Department, where he waived his Miranda rights and confessed to touching the girl's genitals with his penis, Martin wrote.

Sauceda was in custody Wednesday at the Scott County Jail. Bond was set at $50,000 cash only, with the condition that he have no contact with minors, online court records show.

epriddy@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Benton, MO