Ex-Texas cop accused of sexually assaulting man, teen in custody is convicted, feds say
.jpg "Matthew Sepulveda, a former Progreso, Texas, police officer, was accused of sexually assaulting a man and teen while in custody and was convicted, authorities say. Photo by Getty Images.")
A former Texas police officer accused of sexually assaulting a teen and man while they were in custody could go to prison for life, authorities say.
Matthew Sepulveda, 25, a former officer in Progreso, was accused of performing oral sex on a 17-year-old at the police department, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Texas.
In 2019, the teen was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by police, and he was brought to the department because he was unable to contact his parents. He said Sepulveda took him to an office and asked him questions of a sexual nature before sexually abusing him, according to authorities.
The man said Sepulveda removed him from a jail cell and escorted him to an office, where he asked sexual questions and performed oral sex on him, according to authorities. He testified feeling forced to stay because Sepulveda was a police officer.
Afterward, Sepulveda logged the man’s arrest, authorities say.
On Wednesday, a federal jury convicted Sepulveda of two violations of civil rights. On the second count, the jury found his actions resulted in bodily injury and included attempted aggravated sexual abuse, aggravated sexual abuse and kidnapping.
Sepulveda was a police officer in Progreso, a city of about 5,500 in South Texas, from April 17 through July 2, 2019, authorities say.
He is scheduled to be sentenced in May.