NORTH MIAMI, FLA. (WSVN) - A local deacon was arrested after he was accused of molesting two underage girls while on church grounds at a North Miami Catholic school.
Carlos Humberto Ramirez was taken into custody by North Miami Police on Wednesday following accusations of molesting two underage girls at Holy Family Catholic School on church grounds.
Ramirez, 51, who served as both a teacher and deacon at the school, appeared before Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Mindy S. Glazer on Thursday afternoon.
“Sir, you were arrested for lewd and lascivious molestation, so that’s two counts, said Glazer. “A child that’s under 12, was 11 years old, that’s a non-bondable offense.”
The allegations stem from an incident that occurred on March 13, as detailed in the police report. During a Spanish class, an 11-year-old student approached Ramirez to submit her homework. Ramirez reportedly seized her by the waist and inappropriately squeezed her rear end on two occasions before allowing her to exit the room.
Investigators said a 12-year-old girl who witnessed the encounter approached Ramirez to hand in her classwork. In a similar manner, Ramirez repeated his inappropriate actions, adding a kiss on the cheek, and pulled her closer to him. He subsequently let her leave.
7News spoke with a parent of a student, who is a kindergartner at Holy Family Catholic School.
“That’s wrong, and what they did, they should be accountable of it because it was wrong,” Joclyn Reid said. “They shouldn’t act on it, they should pray about it, resist,”
Despite denying the allegations, Ramirez was taken into custody and is currently being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in West Miami-Dade.
7News asked police why it took 80 days to arrest Ramirez after the alleged abuse.
“So, there are specialized interviews that need to be conducted in these cases, so those do take some time,” said North Miami Police Detective Brian Bohne. “The detectives worked diligently in order to make sure this case was resolved properly.”
During Ramirez’s bond hearing, his defense attorney pushed for house arrest.
“Mr. Ramirez is a longtime resident, he has no prior offenses,” said the attorney.
7News visited the address listed on the arrest report. However, no one answered.
The Archdiocese of Miami released a statement just before noon that read in part: “Following this allegation, Deacon Ramirez was immediately placed on administrative leave, NM Police were notified and began its investigation. During these many weeks, Holy Family School officials and the Archdiocese of Miami administrators fully cooperated with the police investigation. It has been a difficult time for students, teachers and administrators of Holy Family School and Parish, and prayers are offered for all those involved.”
Detectives asked for other possible victims to come forward.
“What’s concerning is the ages of the victims, but as I stated, the important part in this is that the school did everything they were supposed to do in this situation and that the students were taken care of appropriately,” said Bohne.
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