Diana Rodríguez, 64 years old, was arrested early Tuesday morning at her home in the West Flagler area of Miami, accused of a felony involving sexual activity with a 17-year-old, local news outlets reported.
According to the arrest report, the teenager stated that he was riding his bicycle when Rodríguez, whom he did not know, approached him at the intersection of Northwest 10th Avenue and West Flagler Street and began to talk to him.
According to the police report cited by Local 10, the woman - whose nationality has not been revealed - "offered him an unknown white pill and persuaded him to follow her."
In front of a Valero gas station located at 999 West Flagler Street, Rodríguez offered the young man oral sex for 10 dollars.
The boy left his bicycle at the gas station and followed the woman on foot.
While walking west, the police officer noted in the report that the accused asked the teenager his age «to which he responded '17 years old.' He stated that she ignored him and continued.»
They both arrived at La Esquina del Pan con Bistec, a Cuban restaurant located at Northwest 12th Avenue and West Flagler Street, in the Riverside area of Little Havana.
There, the teenager got into a car driven by a man he did not know with Rodríguez, and according to the young man, they arrived at her home, where the reported sexual act took place.
The minor stated that Rodríguez engaged in sexual acts twice before he asked him to stop and decided to leave the place.
The arrest and the defendant's statement
Police agents from Miami arrested Rodríguez shortly after 4:30 a.m. on Tuesday at his own residence.
She was admitted to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, near Doral, shortly after 8:10 a.m. on the same day.
When the agents showed him a photograph of the teenager, Rodríguez initially denied ever having seen him before. The teenager, for his part, easily identified the woman through a photo.
Shortly thereafter, according to a report from Univision Miami, the woman changed her statement, apologized for lying, and argued that the young man initially claimed to be 17 years old and then stated he was 18. She also maintained that everything was consensual.
The charges and the legal situation
Rodríguez faced a serious charge—classified as a second-degree felony in Florida—of illegal sexual activity with a minor, as defined in Florida Statute §794.05, which prohibits such conduct when the accused person is 24 years of age or older and the victim is 16 or 17 years old.
That crime carries a maximum sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
Circuit Court Judge of Miami-Dade County Ariel Rodríguez was assigned to preside over the case.
After appearing before a bail court, Judge Mindy S. Glazer set a bail of $7,500 for the accused and issued a restraining order to keep her distance from the victim.
As of the closing of this report, Diana Rodríguez remains in TGK jail.
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