EMERYVILLE — A counselor at an East Bay camp has been charged with molesting a 12-year-old girl after arranging to meet the child at a local movie theater, according to court records.
Robert Neal, 19, was charged with committing a lewd act upon a child and arranging a sexual meeting with a minor, both felonies. He was released from jail on Sept. 16 by Judge Roz Silvaggio, who ordered Neal not to associate with children while he’s out, court records show.
Neal, of Oakland, was employed by the ACE camp, run by the Peralta Hacienda, and met his alleged victim through the program, according to police. She reported that on July 25, he inappropriately touched her inside an AMC movie theater in Emeryville, authorities said.
Later, Neal coaxed the girl into having “phone sex,” according to authorities. He was arrested a month later, on Aug. 26, after the victim came forward.
Police say the movie trip wasn’t related to the camp and that the girl didn’t tell her parents she was meeting Neal there.
Neal has pleaded not guilty and is due in court on Oct. 21, records show. When asked for comment on the charges — and for a copy of whatever statement was provided to families with children in the camp — a Peralta Hacienda spokesman released a brief statement: “Friends of Peralta Hacienda Historical Park is fully cooperating with the authorities regarding this matter and cannot provide any further comment while a police investigation is ongoing.”
A court order bars Neal from going to the camp or contacting the victim. The girl reportedly told authorities that Neal alluded to having sexual contact with others at the camp, but didn’t elaborate on who he was referring to. She decided to come forward after talking to a friend, authorities said.