KILGORE, Texas — An East Texas man initially arrested for an alleged kidnapping which prompted an AMBER Alert has now been indicted for aggravated sexual assault of child.
Around 8:45 p.m. on Aug. 30, 2021, the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office received a call from the mother of two children who said she left her kids with Jesse Ray Schmidt, 33, in Rusk around 1:15 p.m. and when she got back home, around 4:30 p.m., Schmidt, the children and numerous firearms were missing.
Around midnight on Aug. 31, officials say Schmidt's cell phone was pinged in the Kilgore area. After not being able to locate Schmidt or the kids, an AMBER Alert was issued around 5 a.m. The Texas Rangers, FBI and U.S. Marshals were called in to assist in the search.
Around 10:35 a.m. on Aug. 31, 2021, Kilgore police found Schmidt and the kids outside a Kilgore motel. The children were released into the custody of Child Protective Services.
Schmidt was arrested for kidnapping and booked into the Cherokee County Jail on $500,000 bond. Following the arrest, charges of continuous sexual abuse of a child and aggravated kidnapping were added.
According to recent Gregg County judicial records, Schmidt was also indicted by a grand jury for aggravated sexual assault of a child. He was booked into the Gregg County Jail on Monday, Feb. 20, without bond.