A Fort McCoy man is in the Marion County Jail after admitting to molesting a young girl over the weekend.
Craig Allan Hendricks, 37, was charged with lewd and lascivious behavior/molesting a victim less than 12 year of years of age. He went to the Marion County Sheriff’s Salt Springs District Office on Sunday and told deputies that he got drunk, molested a child, and wanted to turn himself in, according the sheriff’s office report.
At around the same time, the victim was at Kimberly’s Center for Protection, where she told a social worker that she slept on the couch Saturday night and that Hendricks touched her in her “private spot” and made her touch him in his “private spot” over his clothing, the report said.
The victim said Hendricks had been drinking alcohol while they were making a fire in the yard and he started acting different. She said they came inside to watch television, according to the report.
The victim said she was laying on a pillow that was on Hendricks’ leg, and her brother was laying on the other side of the couch while they were watching a movie. She said while she was laying on the couch, Hendricks started rubbing her and put his hand underneath her clothes, the report said.
The victim said his hands were under her clothing when he touched her “private spot” and Hendricks asked her, “are you comfortable,” while he was touching her. She told Hendricks she wasn’t comfortable and he tried to do move her a little bit and asked if she was comfortable again, according to the report.
The victim said Hendricks put her hand on his “private spot” and made her touch him while he was touching her. She said she pulled her hand away and he pulled it back. The victim said she pulled her hand away the second time and he didn’t pull it back again, the report said.
The victim said Hendricks was also rubbing on her stomach and legs underneath her shirt and shorts. She said she got up to go to bed and He gave her a hug before going to her room. The victim said she woke up her brother to tell her what happened, and he told her to wait until the morning to report it, so she went back to bed, according to the report.
The victim said when she woke up, she reported the incident to her father and an adult whose name and relationship were redacted in the report. She said her father told Hendricks to leave the house and he left in his car. The victim described the Hendricks as having a beard, short hair, plastic things on his legs and glasses, the report said.
The investigating deputy then spoke with Hendricks, who had been brought to the Central Operation center. After being read his Miranda rights, he denied touching the victim. He said he was confronted by (redacted), which was why he went to the sheriff’s office. Hendricks said he went to the office to turn himself in because if he did something, he needed to pay for it, according to the report.
Hendricks told the deputy he was very intoxicated during the incident and was mad at himself if something had occurred. He said they were in the yard earlier in the evening and there was a bonfire. He said he remembered coming inside, sitting on the couch and watching a movie with the victim and her brother. Hendricks said he fell asleep during the movie, and that the victim was lying next to him and her brother was on the couch, the report said.
When confronted with the accusations of him touching the victim and making her touch him, Hendricks said he didn’t recall anything like that. He said he remembered waking up and going to his room the previous night and the victim was awake when he woke up. Asked if he remembered saying anything to the victim, Hendricks said he did not. Asked if he gave the victim a hug before he went to bed, he said it wouldn’t be abnormal, but he didn’t recall, according to the report.
The deputy observed Hendricks has plastic braces on both legs, as the victim described, and his appearance was also consistent with her statement. Hendricks was taken to jail, where he was being held Thursday on $10,000 bond. He will appear in Marion County Court on June 9, the report said.