Viewer tip leads to North Texas fugitive child sex assault suspect's arrest

DALLAS - Another tip from a FOX 4 viewer helped investigators catch a North Texas child sex offender who was hiding out for nearly four years.

Joe Tarin arrested in Roanoke

What's new:

The U.S. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force arrested 31-year-old Joe Tarin in late January in Roanoke.

Investigators said that after a story about Tarin aired on FOX 4, they received information about his whereabouts.

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North Texas child sex assault suspect has been on the run for 4 years

The U.S. Marshals are looking for a man who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a minor and then went on the run. They’ve been searching for him for nearly four years.

He made his first appearance in a Tarrant County courthouse last week.

In addition to the child sex assault charges, he’s also facing charges for the unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.

On the run for nearly 4 years

The backstory:

Tarin pleaded guilty to the sexual assault of a child and online solicitation of a minor in December 2020.

He fled in January 2021 while he was out on bond and waiting to be sentenced.

Marshals searched across the country without much luck until late last year. Images from TikTok suggested he was back or still in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

FOX 4’s Shaun Rabb profiled the case in December.

Officer Andrew Dilbeck with the North Texas Fugitive Taskforce shared a message for those he believed were helping to hide Tarin.

"You’re hiding someone you know that victimized a child. I mean, that’s not okay," he said. "Help us. Help us speak for the child."

FOX 4’s Trackdown

Dig deeper:

You can watch Shaun Rabb’s Trackdown series every Wednesday on FOX 4. Episodes are also posted weekly online and on FOX Local.

With Tarin’s arrest, FOX 4 viewers have helped police make 189 arrests.