Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office detectives arrested a suspected serial child abuser and are now reaching out to the public for help identifying more of his alleged victims.
In a media advisory announcement, the sheriff’s office described how law officers “executed an arrest warrant for Jeffrey Hitchcock of Magnolia, Texas,” on July 28. A “lengthy and complicated investigation” had uncovered that Hitchcock allegedly committed “multiple offenses of continuous sexual assault of young children.”
Outside of capital murder, this charge is one of the most serious offenses in the state of Texas and can be punished with up to life in prison.
The sheriff’s office expressed solidarity with the community and victims, noting that law enforcement officers “worked tirelessly in conjunction with the Montgomery County district attorney’s office to bring this investigation to a successful arrest conclusion with the hopes of being able to provide healing and closure to the victims and their families.”
Specialist Thomas Hudson from the sheriff’s office asked anyone with information about other potential victims or about “the criminal activities of Jeffery Hitchcock” to contact the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office at 936-760-5800. People can also call Multi-County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-392-7867.
Hitchcock is being held on a $150,000 bond.
Montgomery County residents expressed disbelief at the seemingly small amount in response to the Facebook announcement. One commenter suggested that “bail should be at least $1 million when hurting a child, let alone ‘multiple offenses of continuous sexual assault of young children.’”
Another replied, “150k for multiple accounts of continuous sexual abuse????? Are we the new Harris County?”
One resident’s comment received 60 likes; she had exclaimed, “HE SHOULD NOT HAVE A BOND!!”
First Assistant District Attorney Mike Holley told The Dallas Express that the bond amount of $150,000 was requested by the DA’s office and is “consistent with other, similar cases.”
Furthermore, Holley noted that this bond amount is triple the size of the amount dictated in the county’s bail schedule, which typically dictates a $50,000 bond for first-degree felonies. The district attorney’s office is directed to follow this guidance when recommending bond amounts.
“In this instance,” Holley explained, “we asked for a higher bond based on the nature of the offense, and the judge agreed with our initial request.”
Official documents provided to The Dallas Express confirmed the higher bond amount was recommended and agreed upon by the county officials.
As of the writing of this article, Hitchcock had not posted bond and is still imprisoned in the Montgomery County Jail. The Dallas Express also reached out to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office for comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.