POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – Broward County deputies arrested a certified behavior analyst at his Pompano Beach home Tuesday after they said details from an informant led them to find more than 100 files of child sexual abuse material in his possession. The suspect specialized in working with children, they said.
Hernan Ruf, 50, founded the Oakland Park-based clinic Behavioral Works. His biography describes him as a native of Argentina and said he “work(ed) closely with the school district,” not identifying any specific district.
The company is no longer active but his certification still was as of Wednesday.
“Dr. Ruf works side by side every day to ensure that each child in his practice receives top notch care by incorporating the latest technology into his daily routine,” his biography states. “He is constantly researching the latest trends in Applied Behavior Analysis so as to offer the best possible services to his clients and their families. He works closely with the school district and school officials and has consulted on various cases in the scope of autism and other developmental disorders.”
According to an arrest report, on Friday, a confidential informant went to Ruf’s home on Northeast Ninth Avenue in order to receive a flash drive. Deputies said Ruf gave the informant a USB drive containing 74 photos and videos depicting child sexual abuse.
On Tuesday, detectives executed a search warrant at the home, located near Cresthaven Elementary School, the report states.
There, authorities found an external hard drive containing more than 100 files of child sexual abuse material, deputies said. They said the images and videos showed victims as young as “infant/toddler” age being raped or otherwise sexually abused.
Deputies arrested Ruf on 10 counts of possession of child pornography, one count of compiling child pornography and one count of directing or promoting the sexual performance of a child.
As of Wednesday, he was being held in the Broward Main Jail on a $240,000 total bond, records show. He was ordered not to have contact with children if he bonds out.
No one answered the door at Ruf’s home when Local 10 News stopped by on Wednesday.
Broward Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Veda Coleman-Wright said detectives believe there may be more victims. She urged anyone with additional information to contact Internet Crimes Against Children Detective Christopher DePelisi at 954-888-5272.