It was a hot day in southeastern Missouri, and many families headed to a local water park to cool down. They wanted fun in the sun, but one man apparently had nefarious intentions and left the facility in handcuffs. Cape Girardeau Police responded to a water park just after 5 p.m. June 22, 2025, following a complaint about a man inappropriately touching underage girls. They arrested 26-year-old Andres Morales-Molina, who now faces child molestation charges.
Local mom J. Powell tells CafeMom the incident occurred at the Cape Splash Family Aquatic Center while her 10-year-old daughter attended a birthday party there. Although her daughter was not a victim, Powell says she had a strange feeling all day.
“I pulled up to pick her up and saw this creep being led out in hand cuffs. She and her friends were not one of his victims,” she tells us. “I feel awful for his victims who went only to have a good time. What is crazy, is that when my daughter was there I kept having this weird mom intuition that something wasn’t right. I went and checked on her mid-party and she was fine. Went back to pick her up when it ended and saw the tail end of this situation.”
According to a probable cause statement, staff moved Morales-Molina to an indoor space to detain him while they waited for police to arrive. Officers spoke with the victims, who reportedly gave similar accounts of inappropriate touching. Morales-Molina allegedly touched the victims on their thighs and buttocks and grabbed one girl by her genitalia. The man also reportedly pretended to be drowning while making eye contact with a lifeguard.
“While speaking with each victim, they had a hard time stating what happened due to being emotionally distraught and trauma,” police noted in the probable cause statement.
Powell says the water park was extremely busy the day her daughter was there. But even with all of the people, it was fully staffed, including a security guard.
“With the heat there were tons of people there Sunday and a line down the sidewalk to get in,” she tells us. “This place is crawling with lifeguards so I can only assume this guy was touching kids underwater.”
Another woman shared her experience on the Cape Area News – and a little beyond‘s Facebook page. She wrote that the entire incident upset her.
“I seen him get pulled from the pool. He seemed to be under the influence of something other than alcohol. Possibly amphetamines. Even when he was out of the pool he was moving his body erratically and looked like he was trying to throw up,” the witness wrote. “So scary. I had no idea of what was going on with the children. It’s sad you can’t even take your kids to a fun public place without worrying about things like this. Makes me so sick to my stomach.”
Per online records, police booked Morales-Molina on child abuse and assault charges. A judge set his bond at $100,000 cash-only with stipulations.
“The defendant is not to possess alcohol or controlled substances (absent a valid prescription). The defendant shall have no direct or indirect contact with the victim or any witness to this case, nor is, the defendant to have anyone engage in such contact on defendant’s behalf,” according to court documents. “OTHER: Defendant shall not be on the property of Cape Splash Water Park in Cape Girardeau, MO.”
