Arrest warrant issued for Ruben Ebron in 2006 sexual assault

Ruben Ebron convicted in Lonzie Barton case

LEON COUNTY, Fla. – An arrest warrant has been issued for William Ruben Ebron for a 2006 sexual assault, the Leon County state attorney's office confirmed to News4Jax Thursday. 

Ebron is serving a 20-year sentence after pleading guilty to aggravated manslaughter in the death of Lonzie Barton, along with concurrent sentences for child neglect, lying to police and tampering with evidence.

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According to the Florida Department of Corrections, Ebron is currently at the DeSoto Annex prison in Arcadia, Florida, which is located about an hour east of Sarasota. 

Attorney Rhonda Peoples-Waters explained why the 10-year-old case is being brought up now.

"It could be DNA. It could be an alleged victim who had just seen Ebron's case and had been supposedly able to identify him. All of those could be various reasons why it is just now coming to the light," Peoples-Waters said.

Peoples-Waters said prosecutors could have Ebron moved to Leon County to face charges. If he does go to trial and is convicted, she said, it would be up to a judge to decide whether his sentence could run concurrent with his current sentence. 

Lonzie was reported missing last July 24 by Ebron, who told police that his car had been stolen with the 21-month-old inside, which prompted a Florida Amber Alert to be issued.

The night of Jan. 10, Ebron led a convoy of investigators to the property in Jacksonville's Bayard neighborhood on the Southside, where he said he disposed of Lonzie's remains, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. 

Later, Ebron admitted that he was having sex with Lonna Barton, the toddler's mother, while Lonzie drowned in a bathtub.

Barton pleaded guilty in January to charges of child neglect and lying to police. She is serving 5 years in prison..