EDITOR’S NOTE: This article has been corrected following an April 2 press release from the 23rd Judicial District Attorney’s Office, which stated the office was notified of GPS tampering in a timely manner. The article previously quoted officials who said at a press conference that they were not informed until the following day.

A man convicted of sexually assaulting a child in Colorado was 20 minutes away from the U.S.-Mexico border when he was arrested after a “vigilant citizen” saw him and alerted authorities.

Law enforcement officials on Monday revealed new details about the arrest of Jorge Alberto Campos, 42, who fled Colorado before a jury convicted him of five counts of sexual assault on a child.

Law enforcement officials are now raising questions about the amount set for his bond.

Campos failed to appear in court on Friday. It turned out he had cut off his GPS ankle monitor the previous night, prosecutors said during a news conference. He was arrested Sunday some 600 miles away in Chaparral, New Mexico, just 20 minutes from the U.S.-Mexico border.

Authorities said Campos, who is a Mexican citizen living in the county illegally, carried his passport at the time of his arrest. The Otero County Sheriff’s Office took Campos into custody after a citizen recognized Campos from a Denver media outlet and called authorities.

“A vigilant citizen is the one that saw this and was able to help us capture Campos 20 minutes away from the Mexico border,” Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly said. “20 minutes away from him likely not being found for a very long time, if ever.”

Weekly criticized the decision to release Campos on bond due to the nature of his crimes.

“From my perspective, he should never have been out of custody,” Weekly said. “It’s almost unconscionable that someone can commit crimes like this and be put on an ankle monitor.”

Campos was arrested by Castle Rock police in May 2024 for sexually abusing his girlfriend’s daughter multiple times, beginning in 2021 when the victim was 11, authorities said.

Authorities said a nurse at a Castle Rock hospital had alerted them about a potential sexual assault victim. Authorities said the child’s mother had taken her to the hospital, where an examination yielded evidence consistent with her claims. The victim had told police that the sexual assault began while the girl was in middle school, according to authorities.

In 2024, County Court Judge Kelly Waidler set Campos’ bond at $10,000, according to court records. District Attorney George Brauchler criticized Campos’ bond threshold, saying his office requested to set it at $100,000.

“If he had remained in custody during trial, we wouldn’t be here today,” Brauchler said.  

Deputy District Attorney Brynn Chase, who prosecuted the case, said pretrial service officers received a device tampering alert on Thursday at approximately 11 p.m.

Brauchler also noted that Campos had previously avoided incarceration.

In a 2007 traffic case, Campos evaded a jail sentence and was not apprehended for more than a year, according to a previous news release from the district attorney’s office.

Brauchler said an immigration judge had previously declined to deport Campos for earlier violations.

“A judge had decided that his initial traffic offender status and prior trespassing charges were insufficient for purposes of removal, but that does not give him legal status here,” Brauchler said.

Brauchler said Campos could face additional charges, including violation of bond conditions. He faces a potential sentence ranging from eight years to life in prison.

“Our goal, justice in this case, and what we hope to achieve for the victim is that this guy doesn’t leave the prison,” Brauchler said.