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Police: Orlando man took in homeless woman, molested her daughter

ORLANDO, Fla. — A man in Orlando is accused of preying on a homeless family, and inappropriately touching one of the young daughters.

The investigation began six months ago when the victim's mother 
told detectives life had left her with nothing but bad options.

A few weeks before that August meeting with police, the mother and her daughters were at Walmart.

They’d just lost their home and she didn't know what to do.

That's when they met 40-year-old Antonio Moreira da Cruz.

The woman told police he made himself out as a good Samaritan and offered her and her family a place to live at his MetroWest apartment.

She told police he insisted on dating her and secretly began molesting her daughter, who's younger than 12.

She told police that she trusted a stranger because she has no other family.

Cruz is being held at the Orange County jail on a bond less than $10,000.

He faces up to 30 years in prison if he's convicted.