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Local National Guard employee arrested on warrant in Duval County

An employee with the Florida National Guard at Camp Blanding has been arrested for alleged illegal conduct with a child.

On Tuesday, 30-year-old Jovanne Montanez was arrested on an active warrant out of Duval County.

He was arrested in Clay County and transferred to the Duval County jail, where he’s being held on a $152,512 bond.

The State Attorney’s Office issued the warrant Jan. 15. Action News Jax requested a copy of the warrant.

The arrest report said Montanez was charged with two counts of lewd or lascivious molestation of a child between the age of 12 and 16, one count of lewd or lascivious conduct and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

A neighbor who wished to stay anonymous said Montanez was arrested on similar charges in the past.

Court records reveal Montanez was arrested in 2016 in Clay County and served 44 days in jail. The Clay County Clerk of Court web site lists the status of the case as reopened.

Court documents show in 2017, Montanez plead no contest to contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Action News Jax requested the arrest report from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.

A judge sentenced Montanez to 10 months probation. He was also ordered to have no contact with the victim and no unsupervised contact with any person younger than 18, except in the course of employment and immediate family members.

Montanez is set to make his first appearance in court at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

Action News Jax reached out to the Florida National Guard to confirm Montanez’s rank and status. We also asked if disciplinary action was taken against Montanez following his prior arrest and what action they plan on taking now - we are still awaiting a response.