A staff member at a Wilton Manors emergency shelter was arrested after being accused of sexual activity with an underage victim, authorities said Thursday.
Brian Fields, 31, was arrested Feb. 6 and faces charges including engaging in sexual activity with a person between 12 to 16 years old. He was being held in jail on $120,000 bond. It wasn't immediately known if he had an attorney.
Police said a social worker contacted them to say there was an additional sexual assault at the Kids in Distress shelter.
Another man, 30-year-old Brian Denby, has been arrested for a Jan. 7 incident at Kids in Distress, Wilton Manors Police said. Police say at least four people saw him sexually assault two girls, who were staying at the shelter.
Two employees at the shelter were fired for lack of supervision.
On Thursday, authorities said they found that one of the victims in the first case, a 15-year-old, was repeatedly having sex with a Kids in Distress employee. Fields, who had worked the night shift for the facility for 10 years, had sexual activity with the victim four times from Dec. 27, 2012 to Jan. 6, 2013, police said.
"The incidents reported were consensual between the victim and suspect, although this case becomes a crime due to the victim's age," authorities said in a statement.
Kids in Distress CEO Mark Dhooge said security checks for staff are tight, and include background checks, finger printing and training sessions. Following Fields' arrest, Dhooge expects those checks will become even more stringent.
"We are looking at all of our procedures, all of our security measures, to update them and provide as much enhanced security as we possibly can," he said.
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Wilton Manors police asked the public to help identify any other alleged incidents of abuse by Fields. Anyone with information is asked to call 954-390-2165.
