Location: Tulare County

Incident Date: 10/30/16

City: Tulare County

Posted by: Media Relations

Sheriff Mike Boudreaux announces the third phase of Operation Baby Face to protect the children of Tulare County from sexual exploitation.

As Halloween approaches and children prepare to go door-to-door Trick or Treating Monday evening, more than 35 deputies and police officers from allied agencies spread out Sunday, Oct. 30, 2016, to 137 residences in Tulare County for Sex Offender Registration compliance checks.

Deputies made sure registered sex offenders were where they were supposed to be and not decorating for Halloween to attract children to their homes, Sheriff Boudreaux said.

 “Safety for our children is an absolute must and priority each and every day and especially on Halloween,” he said. “We will be vigilant to protect them.”

Operation Baby Face is an ongoing effort to protect the innocence of children in Tulare County and to keep them from harm.

In August, the first phase of Operation Baby Face dismantled a human trafficking ring in Tulare County, netting 15 arrests for sexually exploiting 23 juveniles and 29 adults. Later that same month, as part of Phase II, seven men were arrested during an undercover operation similar to “Dateline NBC: To Catch a Predator.”

In Phase III of Operation Baby Face, three suspects were arrested Sunday:
-    Frank Gomez, 73, for felony warrant for PC 290 violation
-    Robert Avila, 42, for parole violation for a fresh Health and Safety code 11550 violation
-    Raphael Herrera, 53, for DUI

And 15 registered sex offenders were out of compliance, that is, they were not living where they said they were living and warrants will be issued for their arrests. 

Participating law enforcement agencies included:
-    Tulare County Sheriff’s Office
-    Tulare County District Attorney’s Office
-    Visalia Police Department
-    Lindsay Police Department
-    Dinuba Police Department
-    Tulare County Probation
-    State Parole

Report crimes and suspicious activity to the Sheriff’s Office at (559) 733-6218 or anonymously through our TipNow Program at (559) 725-4194 or tcso@tipnow.com.