Independence man charged with child molestation
INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (KCTV) - An Independence man was charged in Jackson County with a child sex crime following an investigation by the Independence Police Department.
Court documents filed Tuesday in Jackson County charge 35-year-old Jace Berberich Jr. with first-degree child molestation.
A probable cause document said an IPD officer received a report from the Jackson County Children’s Division on Nov. 18, 2024. The Children’s Division told police it had received a report from a victim under the age of 13. The victim claimed Berberich touched her inappropriately underneath her clothing while she was staying at a home in Independence with her family.
The victim said the incident happened “around March 16, 2023,” according to court documents, and said it happened while she was pretending to be asleep in her bedroom.
In January 2025, a witness was interviewed and told investigators the victim came to her room the night of the incident scared and said Berberich Jr. had touched her inappropriately. Court documents said the witness told police the victim asked to stay with her in bed after the incident.
Berberich Jr. was arrested on May 26, 2025, and denied all allegations during an interview with police. The 35-year-old man “speculated Victim 1 may have fabricated or mised the incident,” court documents said, while also acknowledging he had a nightly routine of hugging and kissing the children.
Court documents say Berberich Jr. was released from custody without bond with several conditions. Those conditions included no with the victim or witnesses and no with anyone under the age of 18.
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