New charges filed against suspect in Provo child sex abuse case

Utah County Jail 1
Utah County Jail. Photo: Google Streets

PROVO, Utah, Sept. 28, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — Utah County Sheriff officials have arrested David Lee Hamblin, of Provo, on suspicion of six felony sex crimes against one or more children.

Investigators from the UCSO‘s Special Victims Unit arrested Hamblin, 68, on suspicion of:

  • Three counts of sodomy of a child, a first-degree felony
  • Rape of a child, a first-degree felony
  • Two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, first-degree felony
  • Lewdness involving a child, a class A misdemeanor

The case was filed Wednesday morning Utah County 4th District Court. This investigation is ongoing and additional information will be forthcoming.

The case is being prosecuted by Juab County Attorney Ryan Peters, who has been deputized as a special prosecutor by the Utah Attorney General’s Office for this case.

“This case is still being actively investigated,” says a statement from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office. “We will not discuss ongoing details of this case.

“We also will not discuss the names of victims, suspects, or witnesses who may be involved in this case.”

A judge has not yet set bail or approved the probable cause statement.

“Once the PC statement has been approved we will make it available to media,” the UCSO statement says.

Past filing

In 2012, Hamblin was charged with 12 counts of rape of a child, three counts of sodomy of a child, one count of attempted sodomy of a child, all first-degree felonies. He was also charged with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, a second-degree felony.

The charges were said to be connected incidents of “ritual abuse”

The charges were tied to crimes alleged to have occurred during the 1990s, but not immediately reported.

Ultimately, the charges were not pursued.

In Utah there is no statute of limitations for child sex crimes. They can be prosecuted regardless of how much time has passed since they were allegedly committed.

Utah County Sheriff vehicle Photo Gephardt DailyMonico GarzaSLCScanner

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