Father allegedly catches therapist in autistic son's bedroom closet with boy's pants down: DA

A behavioral therapist is accused of sexually assaulting a teenage boy with autism at his California home, according to reports.

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office recently posted a press release regarding shocking child sex abuse accusations against 32-year-old Salvador Armando Arriaga.

'After being confronted by the boy’s father, Arriaga is accused of trying to escape through a bedroom window before running out the door.'

Arriaga — the behavioral therapist — was at the 14-year-old boy's home in Garden Grove, where he was providing the teenager with a therapy session on Sept. 18, 2024, officials said. Arriaga is accused of holding the therapy session in the boy’s bedroom while the boy's father was in the living room supervising another child, the DA's office said.

Soon the father "became concerned" when he stopped hearing conversation from coming from the room and went in to check on his son, officials said in the news release.

The DA said the dad went into his son's bedroom but did not see him or the therapist.

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"When he opened the door of the walk-in closet, he found his son with his pants down and the boy’s therapist on his knees with his head near his son’s lap," the DA's press release read. "After being confronted by the boy’s father, Arriaga is accused of trying to escape through a bedroom window before running out the door."

The father called Garden Grove Police, officials said.

The DA said, "Arriaga is accused of changing his shirt and returning to the boy’s home while officers were still there."

Arriaga was arrested on suspicion of lewd act on a child, the DA's office said, adding that police over the next several months gathered additional evidence — including DNA evidence — which resulted in a criminal charge against Arriaga and his arrest on a warrant.

Arriaga has been charged with one felony count of a lewd and lascivious act on a child under the age of 14 as well as an allegation that he went into the child’s home with the intent to molest him, the DA's office said.

He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life if convicted, officials noted, adding in last week's news release that Arriaga was being held in lieu of $1 million bail.

Arriaga pleaded not guilty to the charge of a lewd and lascivious act on a child, the Orange County Register reported.

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Attorney Jacqueline Goodman, who is representing Arriaga, told the Register that her client "is entitled to a fair trial and the presumption of innocence. We are thoroughly investigating and will address all charges in court, where facts, not prejudicial narratives, should prevail."

The alleged child sex crimes case is being prosecuted by Orange County Deputy District Attorney Sean Riordan of the Sexual Assault Unit.

The DA's news release stated that Arriaga had been employed by the Anaheim-based Behavioral Health Works.

Behavioral Health Works, which assists individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the alleged incident from People magazine.

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