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Temple officer indicted on three felony child sex crimes

Posted at 9:31 AM, Mar 07, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-08 09:24:48-05

TEMPLE, TX — A detective with the Temple Police Department was indicted on three child sex crimes this week.

Court records say 38-year-old Brandon Lyn Mathiews, who was a part of the force for about 14 years, was indicted for sexual contact with a 14-year-old, recording a visual image of a 16-year-old in a bathroom, and six counts of possession of child pornography.

The indictment alleges these crimes happened between the years of 2016 and 2018.

Mathiews was arrested by the Texas Rangers on March 6 and booked into the Bell County Jail.

Mathiews bond has been set at $30,000.

Temple police said the indictments and arrest stem from criminal allegations brought to the department’s attention on Nov. 17, 2018. On that day, Mathiews was immediately placed on paid investigative leave. Days later he was asked to resign from the department. Mathiews denied the department's request.

Upon his indictment, Mathiews was changed to unpaid investigative leave. He will remain on unpaid investigative leave pending the outcome of the internal investigation's disciplinary process.

During his time with the department, he was assigned to the Criminal Investigations Unit, Crime Scene and Evidence Unit. He obtained the rank of Corporal on Nov. 4, 2016.

Mathiews was a featured member on the department's Facebook page in 2014. He joined the department in 2004, one year after graduating from Baylor University.

Included in the feature was a quote picked out by the detective which reads, “‘Two wolves battle inside us all. One good and one evil; the one that wins in the one you feed the most’ - Cherokee Proverb.”