Watch CBS News

Border Protection Agent Accused Of Sexual Assault

GARDEN GROVE (CBS) —  Authorities arrested a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent Thursday on suspicion of sexually assaulting a woman in Garden Grove last November.

Miguel Lerma Jr., 31, of Fountain Valley was being held in Orange County jail tonight in lieu of $1 million bail, according to jail records.

Lerma allegedly picked up a 20-year-old woman on Harbor Boulevard in Santa Ana about 2 a.m. on Nov. 14, Garden Grove police Lt. John Keely wrote in a statement.

Lerma allegedly drove the woman to the 11800 block of Cardinal Circle and sexually assaulted her, Keely added.

The case went cold until investigators were able to link Lerma to the assault through DNA evidence, he said. Evidence also reportedly links Lerma to another unrelated case in Long Beach in 2009, Keely said.

Garden Grove investigators arrested Lerma in Fountain Valley today as he was leaving for work, Keely said.

(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.