Federal marshals arrest Eastpoint man

A 62-year-old Eastpoint man was arrested at his North Bayshore Drive home Thursday morning on a St. Lucie County charge of sexual battery against a 10-year-old female member of his extended family.

Anthony Joseph Erario was taken into custody without incident May 14 by members of the U.S. Marshals Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force. He remains in the county jail, where he awaits extradition to St. Lucie County.

The felony charge of capital sexual battery on a child under 12 carries a mandatory life sentence.

According to the warrant affidavit issued May 11 by Circuit Judge Dan Vaughn, of the 19^th Judicial Circuit Court, the charge stems from incidents alleged to have taken place between Dec. 28, 2008 and Feb. 28, 2009 at the residence of a family member in St. Lucie County.

The girl's mother told an investigator with the Florida Department of Children and Families, and a sheriff's deputy, that her daughter woke up while sleeping on the couch, during a Dec. 28 overnight stay at a grandparent's home, to find Erario's hand underneath her pants on her private parts.

The warrant affidavit, drafted by detective Ronald Wentz, said the girl initially "did not believe this had happened to her" and told no one about the incident.

On Feb. 15, the girl said Erario hugged her from the back while the family was at the beach, putting his arms around her front and holding her against him. "The second time he did this, she took and forced his arms away from her," reads the affidavit.

Later that day, she once again slept on the couch at the residence, and woke up around 11:30 p.m. to find Erario "had his hand on the outside of her pants and was covering her crotch area. (He) told her she was just falling off the couch and he was catching her," according to the affidavit.

The girl called her mother to pick up her up and was upset, but did not explain why. The girl told investigators Erario had been drinking on both occasions.

Because the following Monday was President's Day, the girl went to work with her mother, and it was then she related the incidents. Since then, the girl's mother "has noticed a change in (the daughter's) normal pattern. She deleted (Erario's) phone number from her cell phone. She refused to sleep with the light out in her bedroom. She woke up one night screaming someone was on top of her. Other little things," reads the affidavit.

The deputy who first interviewed the girl told Wentz that "while I was talking to (her), I noticed she is a bright and smart child. She can express herself very well, and does not hesitate to talk about these incidents. We did not go into a lot of detail, as I believe she will respond better to a female investigator."

            The girl was later interviewed by a female representative from St. Lucie County's Child Protection Team.