Sting operation arrest in Santa Cruz suspect wanted for sex with a minor

A Madera County man is facing multiple sex charges for encounters with a girl half his age, Santa Cruz police said.

Officers said Forrest Reyes, 28, was arrested for having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl which began last November. They said the girl was only 13 at the time the relationship started.

Officers said Reyes met the girl through a social media site and they had a consensual relationship until she and her family reported it to police. They said Reyes knew she was only in middle school when the relationship began.

Using a sting operation, Santa Cruz detectives said they arranged to meet with Reyes, where he was arrested on several felony crimes. Reyes was booked in the Santa Cruz County Jail on sexual intercourse with a minor, oral copulation with a minor, digital penetration with a minor, sodomy and continued sexual conduct with a minor within a one year period.