Homeless man charged in assault of 4-year-old

Randy Orton

WC's Resident Alchoholic

Homeless man charged in assault of 4-year-old
By Katherine Lewis (Contact)
Thursday, March 23, 2006
A homeless man has been arrested and charged with sexual battery after his 4-year-old victim’s mother found him assaulting her, officials say.
Collier County sheriff’s deputies arrested Tito Mora Zavala, 38, on Wednesday in front of the Bayshore Club Apartments in East Naples.
On Tuesday evening, deputies were called to the home after the victim’s mother reported Zavala had snuck into their East Naples home without their knowledge and entered the room of their 4-year-old daughter.
The girl’s mother told deputies Zavala had entered the room and slid down the girl’s panties and then his pants, according to police reports.
The victim’s mother told deputies she had been watching television in another room and went into her daughter’s room and found Zavala standing over her daughter, with his pants down and his hand covering her daughter’s mouth. The victim’s mother screamed and tried to strike Zavala, but he was able to run out of the room and out of the trailer.
The Child Protection Team, which performs forensic interviews, provides medical evaluations and refers families to counseling, interviewed and medically examined the child. The scene was processed and the suspect’s semen was discovered in the proximity of the assault, according to reports.
Deputies learned through interviews with the victim’s parents that her father had befriended Zavala two weeks ago and had offered to let him sleep in the yard and under the porch of his trailer.
While Zavala stayed with the family, he had been in and out of the house, and had shared clothes and food with him, according to police reports. The couple told deputies they had known Zavala as “Carlos� and came up with his name after finding a pay stub where he had been sleeping, reports said.
The victim’s father told deputies his foster son had seen Zavala on Bayshore Drive on Tuesday night. The victim’s father was able to provide deputies with Zavala’s passport photo and the pay stubs from a local labor service after finding some of his belongings, according to police reports.
Deputies learned that Zavala had changed clothes since the assault and they were able get another shirt from a witness who had the same white T-shirt with a soccer logo on the back.
Armed with the photo and the man’s name, deputies made the rounds at labor pools and other known hangouts for the homeless in East Naples. As they were searching, they saw Zavala and he ran from deputies and into the woods.
Deputies began to search for him and asked several contractors working on the road to be on the lookout for a man matching Zavala’s description. They were radioed about 3 p.m. after four construction workers saw and detained Zavala in front of the apartments, 4500 Bayshore Drive, according to police reports.
Zavala voluntarily submitted to a DNA test and was booked into the Collier County jail. A judge will set his bond today.