Man Pleads Guilty to Sending Snapchat Photo of Sex Act on Minor to 7-Year-Old Relative

The victim's mother happened to see the photo on her daughter's tablet and quickly took a photo before the picture was automatically deleted.

A registered sex offender pleaded guilty Wednesday and was immediately sentenced to time served in jail for sending a 7-year-old relative a photo of him performing a sex act on the child and exposing himself to another girl at a discount store in Santa Ana.

Antonio Davila, 37, of Santa Ana sent the illicit photo to the girl May 19 of 2018 via Snapchat, but the victim's mother happened to see it on her daughter's tablet and quickly took a photo before the picture was automatically deleted, which is a feature of the Snapchat app, said Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna. An older sibling of the girl had set up the Snapchat account, he said.

The girl's mother called police, and Davila, who had been awaiting trial for exposing himself to a 9-year-old girl at a Dollar Tree store in September 2017, was brought back into custody, Bertagna said.

Davila pleaded guilty to a lewd act on a child, attempted forcible lewd act on a child and possession of child pornography, said Deputy District Attorney Kristin Bracic.

The defendant was in the Dollar Tree store at 3309 S. Bristol St. about 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 14, 2017, when he unzipped his pants and exposed himself to the 9-year-old, Bertagna said. As he reached out to touch the girl, she screamed, prompting him to run away. An employee and a witness chased after Davila, and he was arrested as police arrived on scene and saw the pursuit in progress, Bertagna said.

Davila pleaded guilty on April 25, 2011, to misdemeanor counts of indecent exposure and child annoyance, according to court records. In that case, he exposed himself to two 15-year-old girls, Bertagna said.

Copyright CNS - City News Service
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