A Chehalis man was charged with three counts of first-degree child rape and two counts of first-degree child molestation during a preliminary hearing in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday, July 14.
All charges are Class A felonies, punishable by fines up to $50,000 and life in prison.
According to the declaration of probable cause, Rafael Fernandez-Hernandez, 51, allegedly raped and molested a 12-year-old girl on several occasions going back to August 2024.
Following his preliminary hearing, Fernandez-Hernandez remained in custody with no-contact and sexual assault protection orders for the victim issued, along with no-contact orders for potential witnesses.
He was also ordered to surrender any weapons. His bail was set at $300,000.
Prosecutors initially asked for $1 million in bail, citing a criminal history including 14 prior arrest warrants, a domestic violence conviction in 1999 and violation of a no-contact order in 2011, along with information they had received that Fernandez-Hernandez might try to “flee to Mexico.”
While not a citizen, Fernandez-Hernandez works throughout the area as a landscaper and is in the U.S. on a Green Card, according to Bellevue attorney Ronnie Rae, who Fernandez-Hernandez has had on retainer since May 9 after law enforcement attempted to serve him with no-contact orders.
“If he was going to flee to Mexico, he would’ve done so months ago,” Rae told Clark County Superior Court Judge David Gregerson, who was sitting in for Lewis County Superior Court Judge Joely Yeager. “The situation is not a surprise to him. He has strong ties to this community, including the home he owns in Chehalis.”
Rae added Fernandez-Hernandez also works in Spokane with his son in a refrigeration business, and he had spoken with a coworker in Spokane to confirm Fernandez-Hernandez was working there in May.
“He was there waiting for the busy season for his landscaping job … He works mostly in Chehalis and the surrounding area,” Rae said.
Fernandez-Hernandez’s son, along with his wife, were both in the courtroom for the preliminary hearing and subsequent arraignment to offer their support for him.
“He’s got a loving, supporting family sitting right in front of you,” Rae said.
Rae argued that with Fernandez-Hernandez’s lack of a recent criminal history and his inability to pay any amount of bond, he was a perfect candidate to be released on “personal recognizance.”
Fernandez-Hernandez was also willing to wear an ankle monitor if released.
“His presumption is innocent right now,” Rae added.
On Rae’s advice, Fernandez-Hernandez requested that Gregerson waive the formal reading of his charges and hold his arraignment immediately following the preliminary hearing.
Fernandez-Hernandez pleaded not guilty to all charges against him.
Gregerson accepted Fernandez-Hernandez’s not guilty pleas for all charges and set his trial for Aug. 25 based on the right to a speedy trial, with a confirmation hearing scheduled for Aug. 21 and omnibus hearing on July 31.
While he acknowledged Fernandez-Hernandez’s lack of recent criminal history, Gregerson was still worried he might be a flight risk given the charges and the 14 prior arrest warrants, and moved to set Fernandez-Hernandez’s bail at $300,000.
“This court does believe a certain amount of bail is appropriate,” Gregerson said.
Following the announcement of the bail amount, Fernandez-Hernandez’s son and another unidentified woman had to be escorted out of the courtroom after an outburst saying he only had one prior conviction.
His wife also believed that prosecutors had pulled the wrong criminal history record and had Fernandez-Hernandez’s birthday wrong. At the beginning of the preliminary hearing, Fernandez-Hernandez confirmed his birth date with the court, and during the arraignment, Rae asked the court to reconfirm the date they had for his birthday.
Despite this, his wife was adamant the court had “him mixed up with somebody else,” and she was also removed from the courtroom by security a few minutes later after an outburst. Following her removal, indistinct yelling was heard from outside the courtroom between Fernandez-Hernandez’s wife and another unidentified individual for nearly a minute.
“I do apologize on my client’s behalf for the behavior of his family,” Rae said.
Fernandez-Hernandez first came under investigation for the charges on April 22, when Centralia police officers were dispatched to respond to a possible sexual misconduct report within Centralia city limits, according to the probable cause affidavit filed by prosecutors.
Once on the scene, officers learned the victim had initially confided to a friend that Fernandez-Hernandez had allegedly molested her, but asked the friend not to tell anyone. The friend told someone, who then told one of the victim’s relatives.
When asked about the alleged abuse, the victim said she had allegedly been molested by Fernandez-Hernandez multiple times going back to August 2024. Immediately following the Centralia Police Department’s response on April 22, the girl was taken to Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital for a sexual assault examination, and a forensic interview was scheduled.
Upon reviewing the forensic interview, the 12-year-old alleged Fernandez-Hernandez had assaulted her on multiple occasions.
Investigators attempted to contact Fernandez-Hernandez at “his residence in Centralia,” but he was not home at the time. His family that was present did allow investigators to search the residence.
Fernandez-Hernandez was arrested July 11 and remains in custody, according to the Lewis County Jail roster.
