A former Progreso police officer is headed to trial in federal court on charges that he sexually assaulted two prisoners under his custody.
Matthew Lee Sepulveda is charged with two counts of the deprivation of civil rights under the color of law in connection with the alleged sexual assaults. He’s accused of sexually assaulting prisoners on two separate occasions while he served as a police officer with the Progreso Police Department.
The two assaults allegedly occurred less than two days apart in late June and early July 2019.
The allegations first came to light when a 20-year-old man made an outcry to Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office deputies just hours after being released from Progreso police custody on June 29, 2019.
According to a probable cause affidavit, the victim said Sepulveda had performed oral sex on him after taking him into custody for a minor traffic violation and threatening him with deportation. The Monitor does not identify victims of sexual assault.
Two days later, Sepulveda allegedly sexually assaulted another prisoner, who was 17 years old at the time.
The teen and his brother, who had been passengers in a vehicle that was also stopped for a minor traffic violation, were both taken to the Progreso jail by Sepulveda, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Sepulveda at one point allegedly separated the brothers, taking one to a squad room, where the teen said Sepulveda performed oral sex on him. Sepulveda then took the teen back to a holding cell with his brother.
The teen allegedly told his brother to say “no” to Sepulveda. When Sepulveda later returned for the second brother and asked if he “would be willing to do the same thing,” the second brother said no.
As a result of the alleged assaults, Sepulveda was charged with a bevy of crimes in state district court, including sexual assault, official oppression and violating the civil rights of a person in custody.
The former cop was free on bond for those charges when he was subsequently taken into custody by federal agents in October 2019 after a federal grand jury handed up a two-count indictment against him related to the alleged sexual assaults.
The grand jury charged Sepulveda with sexually assaulting and willfully depriving the victims, listed under the pseudonyms C.L. and A.A., “of liberty without due process” while acting under the color of law, according to the indictment.
“This act resulted in bodily injury, and included aggravated sexual abuse, attempted aggravated sexual abuse, and kidnapping,” the second count of the indictment read with regard to A.A.
Jury selection is slated to begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday before U.S. District Judge Randy Crane. Opening arguments may also begin as soon as Tuesday, court records show.
Sepulveda faces up to 30 years in federal prison if found guilty of the charges.
