Man allegedly caught flashing 12-year-old girl in north Houston

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A man is accused of flashing a 12-year-old girl as she walked near a public library in northeast Houston.

The girl called police and her mother. The two drove through the area near Irvington until they saw the same car.

"He still had his pants down," the mother said last week.

Manuel Rodriguez Jr., 36, was arrested and charged. He works for Houston-based Prisoner Entrepreneurship Program, a non-profit that helps prisoners with life skills and job training to help ease them into the free world after release.

The program has received recognition from the governor and the Bush administration for its work for more than a decade. Rodriguez was one of its clients when he was behind bars, and as of about two years ago, as an employee.

An administrator for PEP said that Rodriguez is a 'transition counselor' for inmates, helping them find housing and jobs after they have paroled.

"Through his incarceration, Manuel learned and demonstrated character and values and built a relationship with God," Rodriguez's biography stated online.

It also mentions that he was convicted of a serious crime and spent 20 years in the Texas prison system.

Rodriguez was convicted of murder when he was 14 years old. He was released from prison in 2014, and supervision ended a month after his release.

After working briefly at a bakery, he resigned to go work for PEP. He is still employed there for now.

Administrators would not discuss whether he is actively on the job. Rodriguez is also pursuing a bachelor's degree in English at the University of Houston, according to the organization's website.

He is out of jail on $30,000 bond.

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