Man accused of sex abuse begs girl’s mom not to have him arrested, officials say

A man accused of sexually abusing a girl for nearly a decade messaged her mom and begged her not to have him arrested, Pennsylvania authorities say.

Miguel Reyes, 55, of Reading, was arrested Tuesday, Aug. 5, on charges including rape, rape of a child, indecent assault, corruption of minors and endangering the welfare of children, the Berks County District Attorney’s office said in a news release.

No attorney information was available for Reyes as of Aug. 7.

The office began investigating in April, after it was contacted by the state Department of Human Services which shared a report regarding a girl who had been sexually abused “over a period of several years,” the release said.

Authorities met with the girl and she detailed the abuse, which happened from 5 to 14 years of age, at Reyes’ home, according to officials.

It’s unclear how, but officials say Reyes became aware of the accusations, then sent messages to the girl’s mother, “asking for forgiveness and pleading with her to not ‘have him arrested.’”

He sent a series of texts and audio messages to the mother, one of which said, “I know I have been stupid, but I am correcting everything in my life in front of God,” and another saying, “I don’t want to live the last days of my life in prison,” WHP reported, citing an affidavit.

In another message, Reyes told the mother, “I know I put my hands where I was not supposed to put them, but we can fix this,” the outlet reported.

Investigators say that at some point after Reyes learned of the accusations, the girl and her mother encountered him at a church and he “got on his knees and begged for forgiveness,” the outlet reported.

Reyes was booked into the Berks County Jail and his bond was set at $150,000, according to officials.

This story was originally published August 7, 2025 at 11:58 AM with the headline "Man accused of sex abuse begs girl’s mom not to have him arrested, officials say."