Plano firefighter accused of fondling children neighbors at McKinney home

Chris Beattie, cbeattie@starlocalmedia.com
Jan 8, 2016 

Courtesy of Collin County
Larry Edward Combest

A Plano firefighter was arrested this week and accused of fondling multiple children at his McKinney home.

Larry Edward Combest, 45, is charged with aggravated  indecency with a child and attempted indecency with a child for incidents that allegedly occurred at his home in recent months. He was subsequently charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child after detectives connected him to an offense from about 10 years ago in Wylie.

Combest, a lieutenant with Plano Fire-Rescue, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation.

On Dec. 10, a fellow Plano firefighter told detectives he believed Combest “could have possibly been inappropriately touching two young boys in his neighborhood,” according to an arrest warrant affidavit. The firefighter advised police that the boys’ stepmother could provide details.

The day before, McKinney Police had been notified of a child victim’s outcry alleging the abuse. Police determined that Combest, who has a child close in age to the victims, would occasionally watch the alleged victims overnight.

The two boys’ stepmother told detectives “something wasn’t right” about Combest, their neighbor, “freakishly controlling them and constantly texting them,” the affidavit states. The boys told her in late November that Combest forces them to sleep in his bed and touches them.

When the boys’ father stopped allowing them to go to Combest’s home, the suspect began begging the boys to come over and play with his sons, according to the affidavit.

In ensuing forensic interviews, one boy recounted how in October, while sleeping on Combest’s bed, he was awoken by Combest fondling him over his clothes at least three times. The other boy said Combest had “touched his bladder” aan his fingers down his back and touched his bare buttocks, according to the affidavit.

Police arrested Combest on Dec. 21 and charged him with indecency with a child. Upon his arrest, detectives tied him to “an additional offense” that happened in Wylie about 10 years ago, McKinney Police spokeswoman Officer Sabrina Boston stated in a release.

On Tuesday, police added an indecency with a child charge against Combest. He is being held at the Collin County jail on a total bond of $850,000.

Combest joined Plano Fire-Rescue in May 2002 after serving with the Corpus Christi Fire Department for more than five years. He is assigned to the Plano department’s Training Section.

McKinney Police is requesting anyone with relevant information to contact Detective Jason Pruett at jpruett@mckinneytexas.org.