East St. Louis man charged with sexual assault of minor at residential center

Jul. 30—BELLEVILLE — An East St. Louis man has been charged with sexual assault of a minor at the St. John Bosco Center, a Belleville-based residential facility for children, where he was employed.

Ricky Darling, 47, of the 1700 block of Lawrence Avenue, was arrested Wednesday after St. John Bosco staff reported a sexual assault, Belleville police Capt. Mark Heffernan told the Belleville News-Democrat.

The criminal complaint said Darling "held a position of trust, authority or supervision" over the 14-year-old female victim.

The assaults were alleged to have taken place between June 1 and July 23, charging documents indicate.

Darling has been charged by the St. Clair County State's Attorney's Office with three counts of criminal sexual assault and three counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

The St. John Bosco Center provides care for up to 36 children between the ages of 6 and 18 who cannot be placed in traditional foster homes due to extreme trauma, its website says.

It is not believed that there were any additional victims, Heffernan said.

Bail was set at $200,000 for Darling.

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