TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A Hosford man has been arrested after investigators learned he sexually abused two young children in Leon County multiple times.
Michael Lee Smith, 42, has been arrested on multiple counts of sexual battery on a child under 12 and a child over 12.
According to a probable cause affidavit, the Liberty County Sheriff's office received information from the Florida Department of Children and Families in May 2018 indicating that three children were possibly sexually abused three years ago by 42-year-old Smith.
Through an investigation, the Liberty County Sheriff's Office learned that the incidents allegedly involved in happened in Tallahassee, so they sent the case to the Leon County Sheriff's office for a follow up. Documents say Leon County detectives spoke with the child victims in June 2018.
When investigators spoke to the first victim who was under the age of 12, the victim stated that two instances of sexual assault took place on the date of the incident. The date of the incident was not specified in court documents. The first victim said that Smith forced the victim to give him oral sex in his truck and later "raped [the victim]" at a Tallahassee home, telling the victim go "get [the second victim]" after the sexual assault.
Documents say that the second, older victim told also investigators that Smith forced the victim to perform oral sex on him, once in Smith's truck and once at the same Tallahassee home the first victim mentioned.
After a forensic interview, investigators found positive findings for sexual abuse in both cases.
When the Liberty County Sheriff's Office spoke to Smith, documents say he denied the allegations made by the children, but never got back to Leon County investigators who tried to follow-up with him for an interview.
Based on the evidence, deputies found probable cause to charge Smith with two counts of sexual battery on a child under 12 and two counts of sexual battery on a child over 12 but under 18.
Court documents are unclear on the relationship between the victims and Smith.
