Copperas Cove woman gets 40 years, no parole, for child sex trafficking

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Tiffany Ann Rugen (Williamson County Jail)

GEORGETOWN, Texas - A Copperas Cove woman will spend the next four decades in prison in connection with a child sex trafficking case.

30-year-old Tiffany Ann Rugen pled guilty to continuous child trafficking and got 40 years in prison with no chance for parole.

What they're saying:

The Williamson County District Attorney's office says that the case against Rugen started in June 2023 after a joint investigation by the Texas Attorney General's office and the Copperas Cove Police Department.

The investigation into the possible possession and production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) led to search and arrest warrants, including for Rugen. Two kids were placed into CPS custody.

One of the kids, who was under 14 at the time, stated he had been sexually assaulted by Rugen and her co-defendant, Garrett Bailey, at a Round Rock hotel in May 2023. At that point, Round Rock police entered the investigation and learned that the pair had used their "positions of trust and authority to facilitate and conceal the abuse."

Further evidence revealed a broader pattern of exploitation by Rugen, including data from her cellphone showing she had abused and facilitated the trafficking of a second child. She had recorded Bailey sexually abusing the child, shared those recordings through social media in exchange for Cash App payments and even photographed herself sexually abusing the victim for money as well.

Rugen also took the child to various locations across the state to facilitate sexual assaults by Bailey, says the district attorney's office. 

Dig deeper:

Rugen's 40-year sentence will run concurrently, meaning at the same time, as her sentences in two other cases out of Coryell County. She pled guilty there in two cases of aggravated sexual assault of a child. 

She will be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of her life and lifetime protection orders were issued on behalf of the victims.

Bailey was found guilty of continuous sexual abuse by a Williamson County jury in December and got life in prison without parole.