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The Orion

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The Orion

Chico State's independent student newspaper

The Orion

Three arrested, charged with juvenile sexual assault, child pornography

%28From+left+to+right%29+David+Hamilton%2C+22%2C+Vincent+Balderas%2C+23%2C+and+Chesley+Klein%2C+27.+Images+from+Chico+Police.
(From left to right) David Hamilton, 22, Vincent Balderas, 23, and Chesley Klein, 27. Images from Chico Police.

Three Chico residents are in custody after being charged on suspicion of sexual assault on a minor and possession of child pornography.

David Hamilton, 22, of Chico was arrested Aug, 27th as a suspect of a sexual assault of a minor under the age of 10, according to a news release issued by Chico Police Department on Thursday afternoon.

Prior to Hamilton’s arrest, Chico Police received information that Hamilton had been molesting the child and during the conducted investigation, multiple search warrants were served, and evidence was collected suggesting Hamilton as the suspect in the sexual assault.

In a previous and similar investigation, Hamilton was found in procession of child pornography.

As the investigation continued, police arrested a second subject, Vincent Balderas, 23, of Chico on Sept. 9th.

According to investigators, Balderas was a known friend of Hamilton and lived in the same apartment as him. Balderas was arrested on multiple counts of sexual assault of a minor, meeting a minor for sexual purposes and being in possession of child pornography.

Detectives also found information on a third suspect, and on Sept 18., arrested the alleged girlfriend of David Hamilton, Chelsey Klein, 27, of Chico. Klein is charged with molesting the minor on multiple counts of sexual assault.

Police stated that the investigation has been very complex, but evidence found suggests that there are at least 3 more unidentified victims in connection with the arrests.

If anyone has more information about the victims or suspects, they are encouraged to call the Chico Police Department Detective Bureau at (530) 897-5820.

Kimberly Morales can be reached at [email protected] or @kimberlymnews on Twitter.

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About the Contributor
Kimberly Morales, Reporter
Kim moved away from her hometown, Fullerton, California to Chico to work towards a degree in journalism with an emphasis in the news option at Chico State. In her fourth semester at The Orion, Kim regularly reports topics such as local politics, crime and more. Since joining The Orion, Kim has contributed to Calmatter's college beat during the spring 2020 semester and later joined NPR’s program, Next Generation Radio in collaboration with Capradio to produce an audio story back in the fall 2020 semester. In her spare time, Kim enjoys trying to find the best coffee spot in Chico with her roommate.

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