Hays County Sheriff’s Office arrests man for alleged online exploitation of children

By Jissela Cabrera

Assistant Director of News

HAYS COUNTY — The Hays County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man in Harris County for allegedly providing vapes and alcohol to minors in exchange for sexual favors.

The sheriff’s office said in a news release that the report was filed on July 14 by a resident in Dripping Springs. During the investigation, Hays County crime analysts and the Austin Police Department reviewed digital evidence and identified the suspect as Patrick Zepeda.

On Aug. 28, investigators executed a search and arrest warrant at Zepeda’s residence in Harris County. He was taken into custody and booked into the Harris County Jail. Digital evidence showed that Zepeda conversed with multiple underage girls through the social media app Snapchat.

Detective Scott Zedicker, the lead investigator on the case, said the investigation is ongoing to identify more details and victims in other counties.

“We learned that he was in communication with over 30, what we believe to be, juvenile females from not just Hays County but including Travis County,” Zedicker said. “It seems that he encouraged many of these kids to share his information with other kids so that he could have additional contacts.”

Zedicker said that in conjunction with APD’s Child Exploitation Unit, they were able to obtain Snapchat data to identify Zepeda, his display name “Adrian,” and his Snapchat username “acru556.” He also said several victims reported purchasing alcohol and vapes from Zepeda without fulfilling his sexual requests.

“We believe his system was to provide ‘discounts’ to these kids for various nude images and videos, ultimately leading up to meeting with him where they would get the items with no charge if they had interacted with him sexually,” Zedicker said.

Zedicker cautioned parents to be engaged in who their children communicate with and the social media platforms they use.

“Young individuals mask their identity and age on a regular basis,” Zedicker said. “Parents have to be proactive in knowing what programs and applications their kids are involved with.”

Zepeda was charged with a first-degree felony for trafficking of persons/engaging in sexual conduct. His bond was set at $75,000, and he has since been released.

The Hays County Sheriff’s Office said it remains committed to protecting children and pursuing those who exploit them.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact Detective Scott Zediker at scott.zediker@hayscountytx.gov.

You can also contact Crime Stoppers anonymously by calling 1-800-324-8477 from anywhere in the U.S. or by submitting information online at www.P3tips.com.