photo by: Mike Yoder

The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. 11th St.

A girl’s description of being groped for years led to high-level felony charges against a Lawrence man, a police affidavit reveals.

The girl told Lawrence police detectives that the sexual abuse began when she was 12 and continued until she was 15, up until shortly before police got involved and the man was arrested and charged.

Frank J. Martinez, 35, is charged with three counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, all off-grid level felonies, and two counts of indecent liberties with a child, both lower-level felonies, according to the complaint filed against him in Douglas County District Court.

According to the affidavit, which the Journal-World requested and recently received from the court:

The victim told police that Martinez regularly groped her inner thighs and buttocks and brushed his hands over her chest while “spooning” and “cuddling” her. She reported that he also kissed her feet and put her toes in his mouth.

She told police that once, when she was asleep, Martinez held her feet and rubbed them on himself. She said she woke up but pretended to stay asleep and tried to pull her feet away.

The victim told police that all the touching occurred over her clothing. She said Martinez did not expose himself but that during every encounter, she could see and feel that he was sexually aroused.

The girl told police that although Martinez told her he would never hurt her, she was afraid.

“(The victim) stated she was terrified Frank would rape her, so she went along with the touches and his instructions to cuddle,” the police affidavit said.

Portions of the affidavit provided to the newspaper are redacted, including what may be details about how the alleged crimes initially came to be reported to police.

A few days after the girl’s police interview, in mid-April, police recorded a phone call in which the girl confronted Martinez about the touching, according to the affidavit. He “failed to acknowledge or deny” the accusations and instead attempted to redirect the conversation, the affidavit says.

At one point he asked the girl why, if he’d made her uncomfortable, she didn’t tell him to stop, according to the affidavit. He told the girl he would talk more in person but not over the phone.

Prior to his arrest, Martinez told police he’d gotten an attorney and declined to be interviewed, according to the affidavit.

Martinez was arrested May 8 and remains jailed on $150,000 bond.

His appointed attorney, Angela Keck, declined to comment specifically on details in the affidavit.

“We are thoroughly and aggressively investigating these allegations,” Keck said, in a statement through her office. “We believe that he’s innocent.”

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office did not release Martinez’s mugshot to the Journal-World.