Suspect accused of sexually abusing child in 2014 now in jail

Stock image by Cody Blowers, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A suspect accused of the 2014 rape of a 7-year-old in Washington City was arrested in Arizona and booked into jail Wednesday. He was 16 years old at the time.

2021 file photo for illustrative purposes only of Washington City Police officers responding to Telegraph Street in Washington City, Utah, Oct. 22, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

The warrant was issued following an investigation that was opened on April 30, 2020, into a sexual abuse report involving a 7-year-old child.

Following the months-long investigation, the case was filed with the Washington County Attorney’s Office against the suspect, 23-year-old Matthew Hubbard, on Jan. 7, 2021. A warrant was issued for the suspect’s arrest on four charges, including first-degree felony rape of a child and three sexual abuse of a child, each a second-degree felony.

When detectives attempted to locate Hubbard, they learned his last known address was in Laughlin, which is when they reached out to authorities Nevada only to learn that he had no permanent address there and they did not know where he was at the time.

The warrant remained active until the suspect, who is from Golden Valley, located in Mohave County, Arizona, was arrested and booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility shortly 6 p.m.

Hubbard was scheduled to appear before District Judge Eric A. Ludlow on Thursday.

During a forensic interview, officers learned the child, who was an adolescent when the incident was reported, was allegedly molested by Hubbard who was 16 years old and living with the family at the time.

According to the affidavit filed in support of the warrant, the sexual abuse took place multiple times in various areas of the home. It began with inappropriate touching and then escalated to the point that Hubbard allegedly raped the child.

The detective also noted that the child attempted to stop the suspect, but those efforts were unsuccessful.

Through the course of the investigation, detectives spoke to one of the child’s family members who confirmed that Hubbard did live with the family as a teenager, and also confirmed the victim was about 7 years old when the suspect was living there.

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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