A Texas man who had been sought by police for 18 years after being charged with a probation violation related to the sexual assault of a child was apprehended during a recent traffic stop, authorities said.
After nearly two decades as a wanted fugitive, Meltron Alberty was located in League City the evening of Saturday, March 21, when he was pulled over for multiple car “equipment violations,” according to the League City Police Department.
Alberty’s true identity was discovered after he gave an officer fake identification documents during the stop and was initially arrested in connection with a traffic violation, the department said in a Tuesday, March 24, news release.
Then, Alberty’s fingerprints as well as facial recognition technology revealed his true identity and that he had “two active felony warrants out of Dallas County for Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child – Probation Violation,” police said.
“He was also listed as an absconded sex offender for failure to comply with registration requirements,” according to authorities.
Court records viewed by ABC 13 Houston showed that Alberty allegedly violated probation in connection with the sexual assault of a child and that he had previously been sentenced to 10 years of probation for an alleged sexual assault.
Alberty ultimately told police that he had been using a fake name and was avoiding authorities for roughly the last 18 years, police said.
He is now charged with tampering with a government record, fraudulent use/possession of identifying information, failing to comply sex offender regarding duty to register, and failing to identify as a fugitive from justice in addition to his older charges out of Dallas County, according to authorities.
Alberty’s court-appointed defense attorney did not immediately return Us Weekly’s request for comment on Thursday, March 26.
Court records show that Alberty’s bond was initially set at $282,500.
On Wednesday, March 25, the state filed a motion to increase his bond, according to a filing reviewed by Us.
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“There is good and sufficient cause to increase [Alberty’s] bond,” the Galveston County Criminal District Attorney Kenneth A. Cusick argued in the filing.
“Alberty is currently serving a probation for the offense of aggravated sexual assault in Dallas Co. and has a pending fugitive warrant for the same,” the filing continues. “For this reason, [Alberty] is a flight risk, and the current bond is insufficient to secure his appearance in court.”
In an order on additional bond conditions for Alberty dated March 25, a judge ruled that he will have to wear a GPS monitoring device if he is released from jail and must surrender his passport.
A hearing on the state’s motion to increase Alberty’s bond was held on Thursday, March 26, records show.
He is due in court next for a status conference set for May 11.
