Pike County rape suspect arrested in Illinois
A Pike County rape suspect who has been on the run since March was arrested in Illinois on Tuesday, November 7.
An arrest warrant was issued on April 10th for 29-year-old Bernardo Ruiz of Murfreesboro on the charge of computer child pornography and distributing, possessing or viewing material depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child.
According to the affidavit, Ruiz’s wife reported he had sent sexually explicit texts and photos to her 16-year-old sister in February of this year. She said she went through his phone and found the messages. She showed Officer Micah Brown the messages. According to the affidavit, the messages indicated there may have been a sexual relationship between Ruiz and his juvenile sister-in-law.
Investigator Jason McDonald got a search warrant and discovered a video call that showed an adult male and a girl who appeared to be per-pubescent conducting sexual acts.
Later in June of this year, the juvenile reported Ruiz had sexually assaulted her on several occasions and raped her in her home. A second warrant for the charges of rape and sexual assault in the 4th degree was issued on June 30th.
Ruiz is currently waiting to be extradited back to Pike County from Illinois.
