Former DPS official arrested, charged with sexual assault
AUSTIN, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - A top Texas DPS official has been arrested and charged with sexual assault and was fired from his position Tuesday.
The incident allegedly happened during a party at the Leander home of John M. Jones on July 20.
A former co-worker of Jones' wife claims she went on a ride with him on an ATV. That ride eventually ended up in a remote area from the house. According to court documents Jones had been drinking heavily earlier in the day and became aggressive with the woman.
She told the investigator that he grunted and spoke through his clenched teeth as he said “I know it's wrong."
She claims he pulled her clothes off and that "all she was thinking, was that she was now naked in the forest and had no idea how to get back to the residence from their location."
The arrest warrant details a brutal assault that involved multiple sex acts. The woman admitted she didn’t fight back. She explained that "by the way John carries himself with such bravado she knew she would be no match for him if she resisted."
After being brought back to the house Jones allegedly told the woman not to tell anyone what happened. She called a friend, got a ride home and was taken to an emergency room in Cedar Park by her mother. She was later to taken to a clinic in Georgetown where a Sexual Assault Forensic Exam (SAFE) was done and her injuries were documented.
Jones joined DPS in 2009 and was the Chief of the Intelligence and Counterterrorism Division. According to his bio, Jones is a former task force commander with Navy Seal Team Five, and that he was involved in several high risk deployments in 2003.
His job at DPS involved being responsible for the state's Fusion Center, a critical crime tracking and information gathering unit. As part of his job, Jones has met with President Trump providing insight on border security issues. During a briefing in the White House earlier this year, Jones ironically noted that sex offenders were being caught trying to cross into the country.
"For the last seven years, we have had over 4000 people incarcerated that are illegal aliens in Texas jails for sexual assault, the sad thing is 62 percent of them are sexual assault against children, those are Texas children, those are American children, those are our children,” said Jones at the White House gathering.
In a statement, officials at DPS noted that Jones was fired after being arrested Tuesday by Travis County deputies and Texas Rangers:
The agency also promised to cooperate with the D.A. and investigators.
Bond for Jones was set at $750,000. He is ordered to stay away from the alleged victim and had to surrender his passport. His first court appearance is set for the end of August.