Child Molestation Case Puts Man Behind Bars For Decades: Report

ANNAPOLIS, MD — A former Annapolis resident was sentenced to 90 years in prison in relation to a child molestation case, the Anne Arundel County state's attorney announced on Monday. Most of that sentence was suspended, however, meaning the accused man's true jail sentence is 35 years, according to court documents.

The sentenced man, Fidel Reyes-Viveros, is 54. His official sentencing came on Sept. 25.

The accusers are two cousins who lived in the same household, State's Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said. She claimed that Reyes-Viveros lived in the girls' Annapolis home for several years, but it is not clear whether he is related to them.

"The children’s families were trying to help the defendant by giving him a place to stay only for him to prey upon their children and sexually molest them," Leitess said in a press release. "This is truly sad."

Leitess alleges that the abuse happened between 2013 and 2016. Court documents reveal related charges that date back to 2009. Police, however, did not learn of the accusation until March 2, 2019 when the Anne Arundel County Department of Social Services called officers to a local high school.

Two weeks later, the first girl and her mother went to the Child Advocacy Center for an interview. The teenage girl told investigators that Reyes-Viveros touched her in her private areas, exposed himself and showed her pornographic videos. The accuser said she was between 9 and 11 years old at the time.

A report from the second girl came on March 18, 2019. She accuses Reyes-Viveros of touching her vaginal and chest areas and showing her pornography. The second accuser alleges that the abuse started when she was 5 or 6 and continued until she 11 or 12, which was when Reyes-Viveros moved out of the home.

Leitess said this case is a reminder that parents must not give unsupervised access to their children. Parents must also teach their kids that nobody has the right to touch them in ways that make them feel uncomfortable, she added. Everybody has the right to say no.

"I want to commend these young victims for bravely coming forward to report this abuse," Leitess said. "Unfortunately, this abuse went on for some time and it was only revealed long after it had harmed the victims."

Altogether, Reyes-Viveros will serve sentences for five felonious charges: two counts of sex abuse of a minor living in the same house, two counts of third-degree sex offense and one count of sex abuse of a minor continuing course of conduct.

Reyes-Viveros submitted an Alford Plea to all these charges. This means that he did not admit guilt, but he believed that the evidence was compelling enough to convict him anyway.

The prosecution dropped charges of 13 additional felonies and six misdemeanors, court documents show. Reyes-Viveros must now register as a tier-1 sex offender. He will be eligible for supervised probation in five years, according to the documents.

Reyes-Viveros currently lives in Farmington, Missouri. He was extradited to Maryland for this case.

"If someone you know is a victim of sexual abuse, please encourage them to tell a trusted adult, guidance counselor at school or call the Anne Arundel Department of Health Sexual Assault Crisis Center and Hotline at 410-222-6800," Leitess said.

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