Case dismissed vs man accused of molesting minor

The case that accuses a man of sexually assaulting a minor has been dismissed in Superior Court after the Office of the Attorney General filed a motion to dismiss the case.

Last Friday, the Office of the Attorney General filed a motion to dismiss the case against Jose Fejeran Tudela, 57, with Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds stating that the dismissal request was in the “interest of justice.”

During a hearing last Friday, Superior Court Presiding Judge Roberto C. Naraja granted the motion and dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice, meaning the prosecution can refile the case in the future.

Following the hearing, Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho issued an order on the same day releasing Tudela from the Department of Corrections.

Tudela was accused of sexually assaulting a sixth grader and was charged with one count of sexual abuse of a minor in the first degree.

He was represented by attorney Charity Hodson.

According to court documents, Tudela was arrested after the minor allegedly reported the long ongoing abuse to a school counselor at a local middle school, who then reported the matter to police. Department of Public Safety officers who responded to the scene said that one of the school’s counselors confirmed the incident. 

The counselor told police that at around 10am that day, the victim informed her that she had been sexually assaulted by Tudela since she was in the third grade, with the last incident happening the on Sept. 24.

Later, in an interview with the minor, she confirmed that the most recent incident happened at around 10pm on Sept. 24. 

The victim said she had intended to go to the bathroom that night and when she walked out of her bedroom, she saw Tudela in there so she went to the living room instead. Tudela allegedly approached her there and pulled her shorts to the side and molested her. 

The victim said she tried to push Tudela off with her hands and legs, but he kept pushing her hand and legs out of the way. She allegedly told him to stop but he told her to “shut up” and kept looking out into the hallway. 

Prior to the incident, the victim said on Sept. 22, Tudela took her hand and placed it on his privates. 

The victim also informed police that the first incident happened when she was in third grade. At around 11am while she was getting ready for school, Tudela allegedly approached her while she was putting on a pair of long pants and took off her pants and underwear and proceeded to sexually abuse her. 

Another incident she recalled was when she was in fourth grade. She stated she was at home when Tudela approached her, grabbed her legs, and sexually abused her.