The Houston Police Officers Union selected Officer A. Keyes of the Special Victims Division of Criminal Investigations Command as Investigator of the Month in the January general membership meeting.
Sgt. T. L. Roberson said Officer Keyes was assigned to the Child Sexual Assault Unit at the Children’s Assessment Center. Roberson outlined the details of Keyes’ great work.
“Officer Keyes was assigned to call-out duties when she received a call-out case for a follow-up investigation,” Roberson said. “The case was an Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child call for service at 11331 Airline Drive on Aug. 8. This location was a City of Houston Public Library where a 10-year-old male was sexually assaulted in the men’s restroom by an unknown adult male.
“After reviewing the library surveillance video, obtaining witness statements and conflicting descriptions of the suspect – one of which he was deaf and mute – Officer Keyes began her search to try and identify and locate a possible suspect. This was quite difficult due to the limited capabilities and defective segments of the surveillance video.”
But Keyes diligently canvassed the area on foot, checking at local restaurants, schools and businesses in hopes of spotting the suspect or coming into contact with someone who may know of a person in the area fitting the descriptions of the suspect. She was unsuccessful in these attempts.
After exhausting all of her leads, Officer Keyes consulted with me and decided to enlist the help of the public by arranging for a press conference to be held to get media exposure on the case. This was done in hopes of someone coming forward to help identify the person of interest in the library video.
“Officer Keyes also utilized Crime Stoppers as a resource and received numerous tips that aided in identifying and locating an individual who fit the suspect description and was deaf and mute,” the sergeant explained.
“After establishing communication with the suspect, Officer Keyes sought out the assistance of a Certified Hearing Specialist, and an American Sign Language Interpreter to assist with interviewing him. The suspect identified the complainant as being the same juvenile male that he was in the restroom stall with on the day of the assault and gave details of the incident.”
The case was presented to the District Attorney and charges were accepted for Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child. Officer Keyes coordinated efforts with the warrant team to help apprehend the suspect.
Sgt. Roberson said, “I want to acknowledge Officer Keyes and the outstanding investigative efforts she put forth in clearing this case as it helped to take a child predator off the streets. Not only did her diligence and persistence result in an arrest, but it will also now provide a safer environment and improve the quality of life for everyone in our community.
“Thank you, Officer Keyes, for a job well done!”
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