COLORADO SPRINGS — An affidavit obtained by News 5 details the investigation that led to the arrest of 63-year-old bible study teacher Carlton Ranquist for two counts of Sexual Assault on a child by someone in a position of trust and two counts of Sexual Exploitation of Children.
The affidavit says it started in July of 2021 when the Colorado Springs Police Department responded to a sexual assault call. When they arrived, a 15-year-old girl stated she was sexually assaulted by Ranquist at his residence. She said Ranquist would take nude pictures of her and would lift up her shirt and pull down her pants to do so. She also told police that Ranquist had previously molested a male who was later identified as the second victim in the case, the male is now 23 years old.
The sexual assault of the female occurred between 2015 and 2017 when the victim was between the ages of 9 and 12. The sexual assault of the male happened between 2008 and 2010 when the male was between the ages of 8 and 13.
The female told police that the last time she remembered something happening was when she was 12 years old. She said Ranquist would watch a lot of child pornography with her and would make her perform sex acts on him. She said she was then molested multiple times by Ranquist as much as five to eight times every month. She told police Ranquist had fed her, given her money for chores, and given her rides.
In the affidavit, the male stated that he had met Ranquist through church and that Ranquist was a mentor to him and they would hang out at Ranquist's apartment. The male victim said that Ranquist would force him to do sexual acts and recalled that Ranquist took a video of him performing a sex act on him. The male victim said when he got older Ranquist told him that he had sexual encounters with multiple younger females before him.
An arrest warrant was issued for Ranquist on April 13, 2022. Ranquist was living in St. Albans, Maine, and was arrested and taken into custody on April 20, 2022, by the Somerset County Sheriff's Office.
Ranquist was extradited to Colorado Springs and is in custody at the El Paso County Jail.
The investigation revealed that around 2013, Ranquist lived in Colorado Springs and was volunteering at Colorado Springs Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church as a Bible Study teacher.
CSPD Special Victims detectives are seeking more information, including potential unreported incidences that involve the suspect.
If anyone has any information or was a victim of Ranquist, please call CSPD at 719-444-7000.
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