GROVE CITY, Pa. (EYT) — A Grove City man is behind bars for allegedly sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl.
Court Records show that on December 12, the Grove City Borough Police Department filed criminal charges against 47-year-old Joseph Padilla-Vargas, of Grove City, formerly of Franklin, in Magisterial District Judge Douglas E. Straub’s office.
According to the criminal complaint, Grove City Borough Police Officer Jason M. Bennett received a call on station from Grove City Hillview Elementary School on December 7. A guidance counselor stated there was information given to them by a student regarding a sexual assault.
Officer Bennett went to Hillview Elementary School and spoke with staff members. One of the staff reported they were speaking to a juvenile student about another matter, and the student seemed frightened, the complaint states.
The staff member asked if she was afraid. She wouldn’t answer, so the staff member gave her a sticky note to write on. The student wrote “yes” on the note and handed it back. When asked who she was afraid of, the student wrote “Joseph” on another sticky note and handed it back.
When asked why she was afraid of Joseph, the student reported he had touched her inappropriately.
A follow-up forensic interview was conducted on December 12, and the student reported more details about Padilla-Vargas’ inappropriately touching her
According to court records, Padilla-Vargas was arraigned at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, December 13, on the following charges in front of Judge Straub:
- Aggravated Indecent Assault of Child, Felony 1
- Indecent Assault Person Less Than 13 Years of Age, Felony 3
- Corruption of Minors – Defendant Age 18 or Above, Felony 3
A preliminary hearing is set for December 20, at 2:45 p.m., with Judge Straub presiding.
Unable to post $250,000.00 monetary bail, Padilla-Vargas was lodged in the Mercer County Prison.
EDITOR’S NOTE 1: Extreme graphic details were not included due to the sexual nature of the alleged crimes.
EDITOR’S NOTE 2: Several details were removed from this article to help protect the identity of the alleged victims.
