Victims testify against Rudy Nunez

The man convicted of sexual battery acts committed in April 2022 at the West Orange Cinema was sentenced to 100 years in prison. 

A jury on Dec. 1 found Rudy Nunez, 40, guilty of seven charges.

THE CRIMES

On April 3, 2022, the Ocoee Police Department responded to the West Orange Cinema in reference to a sexual battery.

In a screening room, Nunez threatened two teenagers into performing sexual acts on each other while he recorded it on his cell phone. He then fled the theater in his white Ford Fusion.

Ocoee police officers were able to identify and arrest him for several charges, ranging from lewd and lascivious behavior to assault charges.

Just nine days after that incident, Nunez was released on bail.

Seven months later, on Nov. 7, 2022, Nunez then victimized two young ladies committing lewd and lascivious behavior and exposing his sexual organs to at least one minor child at Foxtail Coffee on Sand Lake Road in Dr. Phillips.

That case was handled by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.

Nunez’s bail was revoked, and he has been in jail since November 2022.

The original detective on the case, Edwardo Hernandez, is no longer with the Ocoee department. However, Sgt. Leonardo Gomez said Nunez’s crimes date back to when he was in the U.S. Army and stationed at Fort Benning, now known as Fort Moore, near Columbus, Georgia.

Nunez was reported in an incident involving “abusive sexual contact” and “indecent exposure.” 

Although there is little information from the military available, the case was closed on Nov. 19, 2014. Nunez was adjudicated guilty and classified as a sexual offender.

Gomez said the large number of years sentenced and the number of charges are fairly common, because most perpetrators don’t victimize their victims only once.

“The one thing that I did find different in this case is as opposed to charging him and then sentencing him concurrently, these charges will be completed consecutively,” Gomez said. “For example, instead of him getting 20 years for each charge with them being concurrent, meaning he only runs 20 years once and satisfies all seven charges, instead once he’s done with his first 15.7 years, he will start another one for 15.7 years and then another for 15.7 more years. My … opinion is that this is because previously, even in North Carolina and Georgia, he was charged with something similar, and then when he was down here and got out on bond, he picked up yet another charge. He had proven to the court that he was incapable of assimilating into society and being a responsible human being. As long as the court allowed him to be out, he was going to victimize.” 

BROUGHT TO JUSTICE

The two victims from the cinema — who were 14 years old at the time — testified against Nunez at the Orange County Courthouse. 

Ocoee Detective Dominic Chiuchiarlli and Hernandez also testified. 

Gomez said it is important to note the teamwork that took place during the investigation, involving multiple units from Ocoee, units from the Apopka Police Department, the victims and their families, and the State Attorney’s Office.

“I’m happy that, hopefully, all of the victims have a good support system at home with their friends, their family and their parents, that made them comfortable enough to testify,” he said. “These kids went through a pretty horrific thing. …. I don’t think anybody goes to the movies with the thought that some pedophile is going to force them to attempt to engage in sexual acts. For them to have the courage to go in front of a jury of strangers and adults and face the man that made them do this — it’s pretty heroic. If it wasn’t for them, this guy could still be out on the streets right now still victimizing.”

The OCSO case is set to go to trial the week of March 11, 2024.