Midland man is accused of sexually abusing a child under 14 years old

MIDLAND, Texas (KMID/KPEJ) – A Midland man has been arrested for aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14, a first-degree felony.

According to the affidavit, on Saturday, November 25, 2023, MPD received a call regarding a child crying out about sexual assault. MPD reported that the outcry described Ethan Alexander Hodge, the victim’s mother’s former boyfriend, committing the attack while Ethan and the child were home alone.

The complainant told officers that both the child and Ethan were often left at home together and believed the assault occurred a year ago, before the mother and child moved away.

Because the family was moving away, MPD asked a local child protective center to interview the victim for further investigation. After the interview was completed and sent to Midland police, investigators examined the interview in which the six-year-old boy described being with his mother’s family in Midland about 12 to 18 months ago, when he was five years old His ex-boyfriend Ethan Alexander Hodges was home alone with him at the time of the attack. The child described sitting on his mother’s bed and playing with a tablet while Hodges showered, then told interviewers that Hodges came in and sexually abused him.

MPD detectives contacted the mother, who said she had heard her son’s scream twice before, but said she didn’t understand it because of a “developmental delay” and that’s why she didn’t report it.

According to the affidavit, investigators also interviewed Hodge, who denied the statements and told officers that he was never home alone with the child but that the two had a “close relationship.” Investigators asked if Hodge would be willing to schedule a polygraph interview, but he declined because he was “afraid of the possible consequences of the interview.”

Based on MPD investigations, the arrest warrant for Ethan Hodeg was issued based on the child’s “specific details” and gestures and his outcry. Ethan Alexander Hodges was then arrested on May 1, 2024 on a first-degree felony charge of sexual assault of a child under 14 years old on $150,000 bail.