Lyon County Sheriff's Office says they arrested a non-compliant sex offender in Fernley last Saturday.
Deputies say officers were conducting an investigation into an unrelated matter in the Fernley area when they contacted some people living in a car parked near the Walmart located on East Newlands Drive.
During the contact, one of the investigating deputies, who is also a member of the LCSO Sex Offender Task Force, recognized Matthew Ryan Villafane, a registered sex offender. As the investigation continued, the deputy determined Villafane had been residing in multiple locations within Fernley and had failed to update his sex offender registration as required by law.
Investigators say they also determined Villafane had also failed to register the car in which he was living. The Lyon County Sex Offender Task Force's investigation revealed Villafane had last registered with the Lyon County Sheriff's Office on May 12, 2026. Since that time, authorities say he had changed his residence multiple times without properly updating his registration information within the required timeframe.
Based on the investigation, Villafane was arrested and booked on one felony count of violation of sex offender registration requirements.
He was transported to the Lyon County Jail without incident.
(Lyon County Sheriff's Office contributed to this report.)
