Parents On Edge After Apple Valley Man Arrested For Molesting Neighborhood Children

APPLE VALLEY (CBSLA.com) — Parents were on edge Tuesday night after a 56-year-old Apple Valley man was arrested over the weekend for molesting numerous neighborhood children in exchange for gifts and money.

Paul Hultman was taken into custody and booked Sunday for continual sexual abuse of a child. He is being held on $1 million bond.

Police were called to the suspect's residence in the 16000 block of Winnebago Road that day for a disturbance call involving a parent whose daughter had revealed she was abused by Hultman.

An unidentified neighbor told CBS2's Tom Wait that he saw the enraged mother confront the suspect.

"She ran to the car and she opened up the passenger side and she tried to jump in. He backed off real quick, skid off and she almost fell," he said.

Authorities later discovered Hultman allegedly sexually abused five victims in exchange for gifts. The victims included four girls, ranging in age from 12 to 15, and an 8-year-old boy.

A mother, who didn't want to reveal her identity, said she fears the worst for her teenage daughters, one of whom is special needs, because they spent time with Hultman.

"My daughter is really quiet right now, and she's pretty much staying to herself," she said.

Hultman may have posed as the grandfather of one of the victims to lure in the kids.

"If he is convicted, I would prefer he does the rest of his life in prison," the mother told Wait.

Hultman was reportedly associated with two preschools in the Santa Barbara area until 2007: Sherwood Montessori School and Sherwood Montessori House of Children.

Anyone with information about the case should contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department's Crimes Against Children Detail at (909) 387-3615.

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