Registered sex offender accused of molesting girl at Arkansas bus stop

Mario Perea-Lopez Jr.
Mario Perea-Lopez Jr.

A Level 2 sex offender is accused of molesting a girl at a school bus stop in Gravette, according to Sgt. Shannon Jenkins, spokesman for the Benton County sheriff's office.

Mario Perea-Lopez Jr., 37, of 218 Southland St. in Centerton was arrested Feb. 6 in connection with second-degree sexual assault.

Jenkins said the girl got off the bus and was approached by a Hispanic male driving a red Dodge Challenger. The man inappropriately touched the girl and asked if she wanted to "experiment" with him before driving away, Jenkins said.

Investigators obtained the vehicle's license number and tracked it back to Perea-Lopez, who was interviewed before being arrested, Jenkins said.

Perea-Lopez was released Friday on $100,000 bond, Jenkins said. His arraignment is set for March 20 in Benton County Circuit Court.

Court records show Perea-Lopez was sentenced to five years on probation in 2001 for first-degree sexual abuse.

State law requires registered sex offenders to publicly disclose their name, address and date of birth.

Level 2 sex offenders are classified as "moderate risks." They typically have "limited or circumscribed prior history of sexual acting out and/or only mild antisocial or predatory tendencies."

Metro on 02/14/2017

ADVERTISEMENT

More headlines

Web watch

As of August 2015, there were 11,809 registered sex offenders in Arkansas, with 547 living in Benton County and 567 living in Washington County. Information on offenders rated at Level 3, high risk, or Level 4, sexually violent predator, is available online at www.acic.org.

Source: Arkansas Crime Information Center

Upcoming Events