San Angelo sex offender gets 80 years for sexual exploitation of multiple children
Carlos Julian Ruiz, 29 (Source: Texas Public Sex Offender Website)
SAN ANGELO, Texas - A San Angelo man was sentenced to 80 years in federal prison for the sexual exploitation of two young girls, a crime committed while he was a registered sex offender, federal authorities announced.
Carlos Julian Ruiz, 29, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jason Pulliam.
Texas sex offender sentenced
The backstory:
According to court documents, Ruiz was required to register as a sex offender for child sexual assault in 2013. In 2023, he was identified as a member of a mobile messaging group dedicated to child exploitation.
An investigation revealed that Ruiz had repeatedly sexually assaulted a 7-year-old girl and shared images of the abuse in the group chat. He also befriended the parents of two other girls, ages 2 and 3, and sexually assaulted them while he was alone with the children, authorities said.
In December 2022, Ruiz drove the two younger girls from their home to a hotel in San Antonio. There, he met a co-defendant, Trevor Metterhauser, who had flown in from New Jersey with supplies, including a video camera and drugs, to facilitate and record the sexual assaults, according to court records. Metterhauser, who is allegedly a member of the same messaging group, is awaiting trial in a separate case in New York.
Ruiz was arrested in February 2023 and pleaded guilty to four counts related to the sexual exploitation of children in November 2024.
What they're saying:
"Those who use children for their own twisted sexual gratification will not walk free in the Western District of Texas," U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons said in a statement.
The case was investigated by the FBI's field offices in San Antonio, Dallas and Albany, New York, with assistance from the Tom Green County Sheriff's Office.
The Source: Information in this article is from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Texas.