Humble Church Leader with Secret Past Accused of Sodomizing Girl, TXCN, May 14, 2009

Humble Church Leader with Secret Past Accused of Sodomizing Girl

TXCN
May 14, 2009

http://www.txcn.com/sharedcontent/dws/txcn/houston/stories/khou090514_tnt_sex-abuse-charges-flores.236b92b.html

[with video]

HUMBLE, Texas -- He was known to his neighbors as a kind, generous man who would go out of his way to lend a helping hand. He was a God-fearing man, who was not only active in church, but also a board member.

Now 56-year-old Dan Deleon Flores faces up to life in prison for allegedly assaulting a 9-year-old girl.

"It was a complete surprise to me," said Lester Burton, who lives two doors down from Flores. "I wouldn't have believed you if you told me three days ago, because he seemed real likable."

Flores is being held without bond on a charge of continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14.

Dan Flores is accused of sexually assaulting a 9-year-old girl on at least two occasions.

"Probable cause indicates these were continuous acts. Consequentially, he falls within a new law where the punishment is 25 years to life," said Assistant Harris Co. D.A. Darin Darby, a prosecutor with the crimes against children unit.

Police say Fores assaulted the girl at least twice in March and April of this year. They are not releasing the name of the church where Flores served on the board. They say the assaults occurred at his apartment and the victim's home, not the church.

Police also say this isn't the first time Flores has been accused of sexually assaulting a child. In 1994, he was charged with molesting a five-year-old boy, but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge.

He served two years behind bars but failed to register as a sex offender.

Police say he slipped through the cracks. Police also say while Flores denies the current charges against him, he made a startling admission of another sort.

"He admitted to having a sickness," said Humble Police Detective Jackie Blanchard. "And he admitted that after he got out of prison, he tried to stay away from children."

Neighbors at his Humble apartment say Flores would often drive elderly residents to the grocery store or to the drug store to pick up their medications. They also say he used his charcoal grill to cook for all of the residents in his complex during the power outages that followed Hurricane Ike.

"He's carried my groceries up and took my walker downstairs for me. If I was taking a trip, he'd carry my suitcase down for me," said one neighbor who wishes to remain anonymous. "He'd do anything he saw that he could do. Anything you would ask him to do."

Others in the apartment complex have a less tolerant view.

"If it's true, it's not good. It's like an animal being on the street looking for kids, and that shouldn't happen," said next door neighbor Joe Smith. "He shouldn't be out on the street because he's an animal."

Smith says Flores had a close relationship with the alleged victim's family. He says the girl stayed over on occasion and thought of him as a grandfather, often referring to him as "Pappy."