Child sex offender on the loose after judge freed him on $1m bail

By JAMES CIRRONE, US NEWS REPORTER Published: 04:43, 15 May 2026 | Updated: 04:45, 15 May 2026 A convicted child sex offender in California vanished after a judge made him eligible for bail. On July 17, 2025, Carl Cacconie, 51, was convicted of six felony counts of lewd and lascivious acts on an 11-year-old girl in El Dorado County. Judge Michael McLaughlin set Cacconie's bail at $1 million, which he posted. Cacconie was instructed to return to court on August 25, 2025, for sentencing. He faces 18 years in prison. The El Dorado County Probation Department had already fit Cacconie with an ankle monitor in 2023. That device was disconnected on August 17 on Taraval Street in San Francisco, according to a court-filed report obtained by KCRA 3. The probation department did not contact Cacconie until August 19, which was when he claimed he was merely charging the device. The department directed him to go to an office in the Bay Area to get it fixed, but this never happened. On the day of his sentencing, Cacconie's family reported him missing. Interim Chief Probation Officer for El Dorado County Kaci Smith told KCRA 3 there was a reason for the delay in contacting Cacconie after the irregularities with his ankle monitor. Carl Cacconie, 51, was convicted last July of six felony counts of lewd and lascivious acts on an 11-year-old girl in El Dorado County. The offenses took place in 2014 and 2015 Judge Michael McLaughlin set Cacconie's bail at $1 million, which he posted He was let out of the South Lake Tahoe Courthouse (pictured). He was fitted with an ankle monitor that was supposed to be monitored by the El Dorado County County Probation Department In August 2025, Cacconie's ankle monitor disconnected shortly before his sentencing hearing and he has not been seen since. El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson (pictured) said Cacconie should have been immediately remanded into custody upon his conviction 'Probation does not have 24/7 monitoring of electronic devices or 24/7 response. The use of these devices on individuals outside of our geographical jurisdiction creates disadvantages,' Smith said. 'The department recognizes we could have pursued additional follow-up with the client to ensure he had secured a new/working device,' she added. El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson, as well as the victim's family, harshly criticized the judge's decision to allow Cacconie to leave court. 'To expect that a person on $1 million bond, who has now been convicted, that merely adding an ankle monitor, which can be easily cut off, adds any real assurance to bringing him back to court, it's kind of folly,' Pierson said. 'This is a county that prides itself on holding people accountable. And, unfortunately, that's so far not what has happened.' Cacconie's family claims that he left them a suicide note, but prosecutors believe he is still alive and evading authorities.  The victim, now an adult, endured sexual abuse from Cacconie over a period of several months in 2014 and 2015. He was close to the victim's family and was photographed celebrating Christmas with them in 2015. 'He’s a monster, and he took away my innocence,' the victim said. Another witness during the trial claimed Cacconie molested her in the early 2000s when she was a child. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.