Daycare provider Georgina Imelda Ruiz-Bojorquez was arrested on Feb. 10 in connection with allegations of child abuse and child torture being investigated by the Santa Maria Police Department.
Although the department isn’t releasing the details of the investigation just yet, the incidents associated with the arrest allegedly took place between 1998 and 2005 and involved very young children, according to a press release from the department.
The suspect’s bail was originally set at $500,000, but Santa Maria Police detectives believed she was planning to flee the country if she were released from Santa Barbara County Jail. Detectives made a request to revoke her bail, which was granted, so Ruiz-Bojorquez is no longer eligible for release on bail or on her own recognizance.
According to the press release, the police department has been investigating the allegations for the last few months and conducted numerous interviews, discovering multiple alleged witnesses and victims in the process.
The police department believes that more victims and witnesses may yet be identified, and anyone with information that could help the investigation should contact the SMPD Detective Bureau at 928-3781.
An arraignment hearing in the case is set for Feb. 20 at 8:30 a.m. in Department 9 at the Santa Maria Courthouse.
This article appears in Feb 19-26, 2015.
