Danny Federico
reporter3.riverbendnews@gmail.com
On Saturday, Aug. 26, a 19- year-old Live Oak resident was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor.
According to the Live Oak Police Department (LOPD) incident report, the Florida Department of Children and Families “processed on intake regarding allegations of sexual abuse” of a minor on April 14, 2023. The report identified Raul Alberto Howard (19) as the individual who began assaulting the victim in the spring of 2022, with the most recent incident occurring in March 2023. The LOPD report states Howard has “forcibly touched [the] victim at least twice and had [violated] her twice.”
In a forensic interview with Suwannee County Sheriff's Office Investigator Kim Lane, the victim disclosed the first incident occurred in 2021 when she was 10-years-old.
On May 24, 2023, LOPD Detective Jeramie Cheshire made contact with Howard at his residence. Howard agreed to accompany Detective Cheshire to the LOPD, where he partook in a recorded interview. The report states Howard initially denied the allegations, then later, “recalled a time when he was intoxicated” and the victim entered his room. He was 17 at the time, and claimed the victim initiated the sexual encounter.
Howard stated he woke up the next morning, “puking his guts out.” He stated he took a shower and returned to his room. Later, the victim returned to his room and told him she “had fun.” Howard went on to state that was the only time the two had intercourse. However, he further claimed the victim “says sexual stuff all the time” and that she is “not the same [as] she used to be.” He told the Detective Cheshire “there were times when he had to tell her to stop talking about that 'stuff' because it made him uncomfortable.”
Based on the investigation, Howard was booked into the Suwannee County Jail on Saturday, Aug. 26, under charges of felony sexual battery, sexual assault and two counts of lewd and lascivious behavior.