Woman accuses Florida probation officer of assaulting her 100 times. He’s sentenced
A corrections officer accused of assaulting multiple women during probation visits at their homes has now been sentenced on battery charges in Florida.
One of the women accused him of sexually assaulting her more than 100 times and has sued the Florida Department of Corrections.
A judge sentenced Raul Marrero Jr. to two years in prison after he was found guilty of four counts of battery, according to a news release from the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office.
In January 2022, a woman reported that Marrero repeatedly groped her and kissed her against her will during the six months he was her probation officer, according to deputies and a lawsuit.
The Department of Corrections began an investigation, and he was reassigned to a position that didn’t involve contact with women.
During the investigation, two more women came forward to report similar unwanted contact during visits to their homes, and the investigation resulted in charges being filed against Marrero in December 2022 and January 2023, Hernando County records show.
He was found guilty May 9.
Marrero’s attorney told McClatchy News his client was facing a maximum of four years in prison on the four charges.
Alongside the criminal proceedings, the first woman to report the incidents is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 from the state agency as part of a civil lawsuit filed in August.
She said Marrero came to her home roughly twice a week for six months “for the alleged purpose of in-home inspections, often at odd hours of the night, which was another practice permitted by (the Florida Department of Corrections).”
The woman said he sexually assaulted her nearly every time he visited her home and during her required weekly visits to his office.
She said she had “terrible anxiety on her way to his office every week because of these ongoing sexual assaults” and was afraid to report him out of fear he would say she violated her probation.
In November 2021, she was hospitalized for heart failure, and she reported Marrero came to see her, according to the lawsuit. She said he reached under her hospital gown and touched her inappropriately.
The lawsuit says the Department of Corrections knew about Marrero’s misconduct, which the agency denies.
McClatchy News reached out to the Florida Department of Corrections for comment on May 10 and did not immediately receive a response.
Hernando County is on the Gulf Coast of Florida, about a 50-mile drive north from downtown Tampa.
If you have experienced sexual assault and need someone to talk to, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline for support at 1-800-656-4673 or visit the hotline's online chatroom.
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