State Attorney Amira Fox convened the Hendry County Grand Jury and they returned an indictment against John Eric Hernandez, 38, of Clewiston, for multiple counts involving crimes against a child.
Hernandez has been indicted on five counts of Capital Sexual Battery – Child Less Than 12 Years of Age, all Capital Felonies, two counts of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation, Life Felonies, seven counts of Promoting a Sexual Performance by a Child, Second Degree Felonies, and five counts of Possession of Child Pornography (10 or more), Second Degree Felonies.
Assistant State Attorney Haylie Gutierrez is prosecuting the case. The Clewiston Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) handled the investigation.
The indictment alleges in part, that between 2023 and 2024, in Hendry County, the defendant committed sexual battery on a child less than 12 years of age, involving penetration of the child victim’s mouth. The indictment also alleges the defendant molested the child by touching the child’s genitals and also forced the child to perform lewd acts upon the defendant.
The indictment also reads in part, that the defendant did unlawfully produce, direct, or promote a performance including sexual conduct by the child victim, multiple times. The indictment also alleges that on one or more occasions between October 1, 2024, and December 10, 2024, the defendant, in Hendry County, did unlawfully and knowingly possess 10 or more images of any form of child pornography, to include photographs, motion pictures, exhibitions, shows, representations, images or other presentations that the defendant knew included, in whole or in part, sexual conduct by a child.
“I want to make it clear, crimes against children, crimes that extinguish the innocence of a child, will absolutely not be tolerated and will be met with the strongest prosecution possible, as this indictment on Capital Felony charges shows,” said State Attorney Fox.
Samantha Syoen – State Attorney’s Office Communications Director