A Hellertown man who was charged last August with the sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl and last November with indecent sexual behavior toward minors is facing additional charges involving children who authorities say were 12, 13 and 14 years old at the time of the alleged crimes.
WNEP-TV in Scranton reported Tuesday that 22-year-old Rafael Santiago Jr. was a Wilkes University student when he was first charged with a sex crime against a child last year.
In November, WBRE/WYOU reported that Santiago allegedly used the Snapchat app to have an online sexual relationship with another girl; a relationship police said was confirmed by several lewd images of the girl that were allegedly found on his phone.
At the time, police in Dallas Township, Luzerne County, said their investigation against Santiago was ongoing and that they believed additional victims may be “out there.”
That prediction was made before the following additional charges were filed against Santiago in several Luzerne County municipalities including Dallas Township this week:
- Unlawful Contact with a Minor-Sexual Offenses (Felony 3 and Felony 2)
- Corruption of Minors (Felony 3, Misdemeanor 1)
- Criminal Use of Communication Facility (Felony 3)
- Indecent Assault of a Person Less Than 16 Years of Age (Misdemeanor 2)
- Statutory Sexual Assault by a Person 8-11 Years Older (Felony 2)
- Involuntary Deviate Sexual Intercourse with a Person Less Than 16 Years of Age (Felony 1)
- Disseminating Explicit Sexual Material to a Minor (Felony 3)
- Unlawful Contact with Minor-Obscene and Other Sexual Materials and Performances (Felony 3)
- Contact/Communication with Minor-Sexual Abuse (Felony 3)
The information listed on five criminal court dockets filed as part of the latest round of charges against Santiago indicates that the alleged offenses that have come to light since November of last year occurred between November 2020 and March 2021.
The latest charges have been filed by police in Dallas Township, Hanover Township and Kingston Township, all of which are in Luzerne County.
Dallas Township Police previously asked anyone with information about Santiago to contact their department online or by calling 570-674-2003.
According to the court documents, Santiago is currently being held without bail in the Luzerne County Prison due to a court determination that he is a “danger to society.”
He is being represented by attorney Shelley L. Centini of Wilkes-Barre, according to court papers filed in the cases.
A preliminary hearing on some of the new charges against Santiago is scheduled to be held March 24 at 9:45 a.m. in Luzerne County Central Court, according to the dockets.
Note: All individuals charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This story was compiled using information from local media sources and Luzerne County court records.
