‘IT BROKE US’: FATHER OF ACCUSED SEX OFFENDER FLED S.A. AFTER SEXUAL ABUSE CONVICTION  

The father of a 31-year-old San Antonio man recently accused of sexually assaulting two of hisminor relatives is himself a convicted sex offender who fled Bexar County after pleading guilty tosexual abuse charges.

Placido Garay, 68, a convicted sex offender who has been missing since March 2008, is the fatherof Anthony Garay, who was recently arrested on a charge of sexual assault after his minor relativewas allegedly caught searching for pornography at school and told her teacher she was trying tolearn about what Garay does to her at night.

Garay is accused of sexually assaulting two of his minor relatives, though he currently facesonly one charge.

The accusations against him are strikingly similar to those against his father. Placido Garaypleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault with a child in 2008 after he molested two of hisminor relatives, who were about the same age as Anthony Garay's alleged victims at the time.

But Garay fled Bexar County just weeks before his 10-year sentence of deferred adjudicationbegan.

I trusted him with the most valuable parts of me, said Raquel Seeman, 41, a relative of thevictims, and it broke us.

Seeman says Garay's family members helped him cross the border into Mexico, where he hasremained for over 9 years. She doesn't know his exact whereabouts, which makes it difficult forU.S. Marshals to extradite him back to the U.S. from Mexico, if that is indeed where he currentlyresides.

In light of the new charges brought against Garay's son, Seeman believes his bond should beraised from $75,000 to something significantly higher, or for a judge to deny his bail, as he mayrepresent a flight risk.

If you let Anthony go, he'll go to Mexico so he and his dad can go molest girls over there,she said.

The Bexar County District Attorney's Office did not immediately respond to requests for commenton whether such information could affect Garay's bond amount.

[My relatives] were probably the same age as those girls at the time of the abuse, Seemansaid. My heart breaks for them.

The two victims are now in their 20s, and though they're making their way through adulthood,Seeman said the trauma caused by Garay is part of their daily struggle.

That struggle was especially difficult on Wednesday, Seeman said, as news about accusations ofsexual assault against Garay's son, Anthony, reached the public.

It seemed like were were back at square one, Seeman said through tears, adding one of herrelatives will soon start seeing a counselor to help cope with the new revelations.

According to the arrest affidavit for Garay, Child Protective Services had previouslyinvestigated him for sexually abusing the same two relatives, though he apparently was not chargedwith any criminal activity as a result of the investigation.

A representative for CPS on Wednesday declined to comment on the investigation.

(San Antonio, TX)

Message from Executive Director Laura A. Ahearn: Parents for Megan's Law and the Crime VictimsCenter provides prevention education, advocacy, counseling and other valuable support services tochild and adult victims of sexual assault and to all victims of violent crime. Please visit ourwebsite at www.parentsformeganslaw.org for news, information and resources in your community.

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