A man is in custody after authorities found a missing person with an intellectual disability inside his unincorporated El Paso County mobile home in September 2025.

According to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, authorities arrived at the home of 69-year-old Eugene Romero the day of Sept. 24 and talked to the missing person, who could not articulate details of events to law enforcement but displayed signs of sexual assault and was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Romero, who refused to let officers inside, denied any wrongdoing and said he would “never risk his freedom,” according to a news release from the Sheriff’s Office.

Days later, detectives swabbed Romero and the home, located in the 2700 block of Robinson Street, for DNA. They also interviewed the alleged victim, who provided details that led authorities to believe the person had been sexually assaulted and kidnapped.

On May 14, DNA results confirmed a match to other evidence collected in the case.

Romero was arrested May 22 at his residence.

Records show he is being held at the El Paso County jail on a $75,000 bond. He is being charged with second-degree kidnapping, crimes against an at-risk person, sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact and false imprisonment.