Further action sought in child sex-abuse case

PROVO — Prosecutors in the case of a man accused of sexually abusing young girls, then documenting the abuse with his cell phone camera is asking a judge to consider binding the man over for trial on four remaining charges.

Jacabo Javier Rivera, 32, has been charged with seven first-degree felonies, including sodomy on a child, rape of a child and aggravated sex abuse of a child. He was arrested and has been in custody since April.

His ex-girlfriend went to police after she found images on Rivera's phone showing a man in compromising positions with young children.

Rivera was bound over on three of the charges — two counts of sodomy on a child and rape of a child — after a preliminary hearing in October, but the hearing was continued in order to present and consider more information about the remaining four charges.

After the final part of the preliminary hearing Wednesday afternoon, Deputy Utah County Attorney Donna Kelly said she would be filing a motion asking the judge to rule on the remaining charges, which includes one count of rape of a child and three counts of aggravated sex abuse of a child.

The next court date is set for March 1, for oral arguments on the motion Kelly will file, as well as a response by Rivera's attorney Paige Benjamin.

Rivera is also facing five charges of production of child pornography in federal court and will go to trial in that case in June.