A Centralia woman accused of sexually assaulting a child under the age of 12 multiple times between May 2017 and May 2020 is now facing felony charges in Lewis County Superior Court.
Four counts of first-degree rape of a child and two counts of first-degree child molestation were filed against Emilia Perez-Mejia, 21, on May 30, 2024, after the Centralia Police Department completed a year-long investigation into a report of possible sexual misconduct, according to court documents.
An employee at an elementary school in Centralia reported the misconduct on March 23, 2023, after the child’s parents expressed concerns about the child’s mental wellbeing during a parent-teacher conference.
The child reportedly agreed to speak with investigators about the abuse several months after the school employee made a report to law enforcement, according to court documents. A forensic interview with the child took place on June 27, 2023.
Perez-Mejia denied the allegations when she was questioned by a Centralia officer who served her legal papers on July 23, 2023, according to court documents.
She allegedly said she “believed (the child’s parent) was the cause of (the child) saying she’d sexually touched (the child),” according to court documents.
Lewis County Superior Court issued a $100,000 warrant for Perez-Mejia’s arrest the same day charges were filed on May 30, 2024, according to court documents. Lewis County Jail records indicate Perez-Mejia was arrested and booked on that warrant at 12:55 a.m. on Sunday, June 16 after she was stopped for an unrelated DUI and other charges out of Chehalis Municipal Court.
Each charge Perez-Mejia faces is a class A felony punishable by up to life in prison.
Bail is set at $50,000. A sexual assault protection order is in place for the victim.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, June 20.
