Police Report: Mother punches man in face during attempted kidnapping of her child

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - Lubbock police have arrested a man accused of attempting to kidnap a 4-year-old child on Monday, May 2.

The police department held a news conference Thursday morning identifying the suspect as 29-year-old Delmer Orlando Ortiz Licona. He is the same man who was run over by a car after a mother allegedly found him naked in bed with her 7-year-old child in August.

READ MORE HERE: Mom finds boyfriend in bed with 7-year-old, hits him with car when he ran

On May 2, 2022, police were called to a business in the 3800 block of 28th street for reports of an attempted kidnapping of a child.

The police report states the child and the child’s mother were at the address to pay their rent. The mother noticed a man, now identified as Licona, looking at them. The police report says she was nervous because she had a money order for a large amount and was worried the man knew about it. She noticed Licona was carrying a case of Twisted Tea to his vehicle. Once the mother dropped off the payment in the dropbox, she noticed Licona coming toward her.

She told police Licona asked how old her child was. The mother said she felt uncomfortable and rushed her child to her vehicle. The child was climbing into the backseat to get into his car seat and his mother was helping him when she felt Licona come alongside her right side and reach into her vehicle. She saw Licona grab the child around the waist and pull the child towards him.

She told police she turned and pushed Licona back and he said in broken English he was trying to help her. She punched Licona in the face and told him to get away. Licona said again he was just helping and ran to the passenger side of the vehicle and then took off in an unknown direction.

The mother and the child were not injured. The mother said Licona’s vehicle was parked in the north parking lot, as if ready for a quick getaway.

Police say Special Victims Unit detectives identified Licona as the suspect within five hours.

Further investigations into the attempted kidnapping led to the discovery of a connection to an arrest in a domestic disturbance call from February 2022.

During that call, police were called to the 1700 block of 27th Street in reference to a domestic disturbance. The victim told police she was sleeping in her bedroom. Her mother let Licona inside because her mother and Licona were going to play video games together. The victim told police she and Licona were in a dating relationship. The victim told police she woke up with Licona in her bed. He wanted to have sex and she said no. She told him to leave and he began to scratch and punch her. When she fought back and pushed him off of her, she ran out the back door and he ran out the front door. Police were able to catch Licona as he was running in an alley.

Twenty days later, according to the police reports, Licona violated a protective order and went back to the house on 27th Street. Police arrived and found what looked to be a struggle. The officer found Licona in the house. The victim then came back to the house to speak to officers and told them about a protective order against Licona. Since he was in violation of the protective order, Licona was arrested and booked into the Lubbock County Detention Center.

During that investigation, detectives received a delayed report of sexual assault from a 7-year-old victim. The assault happened in August 2021.

Then in April, Licona was arrested and charged with reckless driving and failure to identify after an officer saw him run a stop sign. Licona lied to the officer about his name, but was arrested and booked into the Lubbock County Detention Center.

The May 2 attempted kidnapping and the August 8 sexual assault cases were linked. Police say the aggravated sexual assault of a child case was previously presented to the Lubbock County District Attorney’s Office, where the D.A. expedited the assault warrant for the charge.

During the news conference, a member of the media asked about a situation a couple of weeks ago where a man was taking photos of children at Canyon Lakes Park. Members of the public thought that man was Lincona.

“There’s no criminal act at the park that has been determined to yes to be the same person. That was part of this investigation,” said Sharon Casey, LPD Crimes Against Children Supervisor.

Licona was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals before 2 p.m. on May 3, 2022, in the 4300 block of Boston Avenue.

His charges are aggravated attempted kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault of a child, immigration customs enforcement detainer, assault causing bodily injury, evading arrest, reckless driving, and failure to identify. He is being held in the Lubbock County Detention Center with bonds totaling $430,000. However, because of the federal detainer, he is being held without bond.

The immigration customs enforcement detainer is due to him being from Honduras.

Based on information collected during these investigations, detectives say they must consider the possibility there could be more victims.

“If you recognize Licona or believe there is even a remote chance he has had contact with your child, police are asking you to take the time to speak to your child. If you have concerns, do not hesitate to call the police and allow the detectives to investigate to ensure Licona is held accountable for all of his actions,” said Lubbock Police Chief Floyd Mitchell.

To report any incident, call the Special Victims Unit at 806-775-2788.

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