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Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Tag Archives: Sex Crimes

The SAPD arrested an Uber driver for sexually assaulting a female passenger

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Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: Detectives Arrest Uber Driver For Sexual Assault & Believe There May Be Additional Victims

Arrested: Angel Sanchez (37) Costa Mesa, Booked into the SAPD Jail on the Sexual Assault Charges and being held on $100,000 bail

During the evening hours of March 30, 2017, a female adult requested an Uber ride from a company gathering to her home in Santa Ana. The female victim was picked up by Uber driver Angel Sanchez in a 2016 Grey Toyota Sienna (similar to the one pictured), and driven to a street near her residence in Santa Ana. There, Sanchez sexually assaulted the victim in the Toyota Sienna.

After the sexual assault, the victim ran from the suspect’s vehicle and immediately called the police department for assistance. Continue reading→

Santa Ana man charged with molesting two girls, including one younger than 10

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Joseph Margo, a 48-year-old man was charged Monday with sexually assaulting two girls, including one who was 10 or younger, in Santa Ana, according to the O.C. Register.

Margo is facing numerous felony charges including two counts each of sexual intercourse or sodomy with a child 10 or younger, committing a lewd or lascivious act with a minor younger than 14, oral copulation or sexual penetration of a child 10 or younger, and lewd acts on a child aged 14 or 15. Continue reading→

Tutor at Santa Ana’s Think Together arrested for distributing child porn

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Anthony Robert Chau, a 28-year-old Rowland Heights man who worked with students in Orange County, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of distributing child pornography by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, according to the O.C. Register.

Chau came to the attention of detectives during an operation that was not specifically targeting him but targeting people who trade child pornography online, Wegener said. It did not appear that Chau manufactured any of the footage he distributed, according to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. Continue reading→

Fake O.C. modeling agent gets over 12 years in prison for child porn and molestation

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

Case # 15HF1113

Date: March 24, 2017

MAN POSING AS MODELING AGENT SENTENCED TO 12 YEARS AND EIGHT MONTHS IN PRISON FOR SEXUALLY ASSAULTING MINOR GIRLS AND POSSESSING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – A man who posed as a modeling agent and professional photographer was sentenced today to 12 years and eight months in state prison for sexually assaulting minor girls and possessing child pornography. Christopher Andrew Brown, 44, Bell Canyon, pleaded guilty on Dec. 22, 2016, to five felony counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object of a minor, five felony counts of oral copulation of a minor, one felony count of possession and control of child pornography, one felony count of using a minor for distribution of obscene material, and one felony count of lewd acts on a child. In addition to prison, Brown was sentenced to mandatory lifetime sex offender registration.

At the time of the crime, Brown traveled as a freelance photographer and told victims he was a modeling agent. The defendant previously worked as a children’s gymnastics coach. Continue reading→

O.C. man used social media to contact minors and commit lewd acts on them

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

Case # 14WF2704

Date: March 20, 2017

MAN SENTENCED TO 12 YEARS IN PRISON FOR USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO CONTACT MINORS TO COMMIT LEWD ACTS

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was sentenced to 12 years in state prison today for contacting underage victims through social media with the intent of committing lewd acts. Michael Theodore Mordaunt, 47, Cypress, pleaded guilty on Feb. 9, 2017, to 19 felony counts of contacting a child with the intent to commit a specified crime,five felony counts of lewd acts upon a child age 14 or 15,two felony counts of lewd acts upon a child under 14, three felony counts of meeting a minor with the intent to engage in lewd conduct, one felony count of possession and control of child pornography, and a sentencing enhancement allegation for substantial sexual conduct with a child. In addition to prison, Mordaunt was also sentenced to mandatory lifetime sex offender registration.

At the time of the crime, Mordaunt was working in the Information Technology Department of the Boeing Company in Seal Beach. Continue reading→

Parolee sentenced to 233 years in prison after kidnapping, raping and pimping a victim in Santa Ana

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

March 17, 2017

Case # 15CF1483

PAROLEE WHO TRAFFICKED WOMAN WHILE ON GPS MONITORING SENTENCED TO 233 YEARS TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR KIDNAPPING, RAPING, AND PIMPING VICTIM ON THE FOURTH OF JULY

*Longest sentence in HEAT Unit history

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A parolee who trafficked a woman while on GPS monitoring was sentenced yesterday to 233 years to life in prison for kidnapping, raping, and pimping a victim on the Fourth of July. Beau James Dearborne, 38, Santa Ana, was found guilty by a jury on Nov. 17, 2016, of two felony counts each of forcible rape in concert, oral copulation in concert with force and fear, pimping, and pandering, and one felony count each of human trafficking, kidnapping to commit rape, and second degree robbery. The defendant admitted a prior serious and violent felony strike conviction for rape of an unconscious person in 2010 in Orange County, and sentencing enhancements for prior prison convictions in 2003 and 2006 in Clark County, Nevada. Dearborne was sentenced on March 16, 2017, to 228 years determinate and 5 years to life indeterminate. Continue reading→

Long Beach man convicted of molesting a little girl in Costa Mesa since she was 9 months old

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Ryan Michael Booth, a 31-year old Long Beach man, faces 128 years to life in prison for sexually assaulting a family member in Costa Mesa for more than a year, starting when she was 9 months old, and circulating videos of his acts online, according to the O.C. Register.

Booth was convicted on Wednesday of multiple felony counts of sexually assaulting a child, using a child for obscene matter and possession of child pornography, according to the DA. Continue reading→

Former SAUSD teacher sentenced to 190 years in prison after sexually assaulting two Filipino girls

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Robert Ruben Ornelas, a former SAUSD school teacher was sentenced Monday to 190 years in federal prison for sexually assaulting two girls during trips to the Philippines, according to the O.C. Register.

Fortunately U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney dropped the hammer on Ornelas, giving him the maximum punishment available. Continue reading→

Garden Grove woman charged with facilitating communication between a rapist and a child victim

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

Case # 17WM01500

Date: February 10, 2017

WOMAN CHARGED WITH VIOLATING PROTECTIVE ORDER BY FACILITATING COMMUNICATION BETWEEN CHILD RAPE VICTIM AND THE PERPETRATOR

WESTMINSTER, Calif. – A woman was charged this week with violating a protective order by facilitating communication between a child rape victim and the perpetrator. Jessica Lee Pearles, 37, Garden Grove, was charged on Feb. 7, 2017, with one misdemeanor count of violation of a protective order. If convicted, Pearles faces a maximum sentence of one year in county jail. The defendant’s arraignment date is to be determined. Continue reading→

Death penalty for sex offender who kidnapped and murdered three Santa Ana women

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

Case #14ZF0337

Date: February 3, 2017

REGISTERED SEX OFFENDER SENTENCED TO RECEIVE DEATH PENALTY FOR SPECIAL-CIRCUMSTANCES MURDER OF FOUR WOMEN AFTER KIDNAPPING THE VICTIMS

*Co-defendant is also facing the death penalty

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A registered sex offender was sentenced to receive the death penalty today for the special-circumstances murder of four women after kidnapping the victims. Steven Dean Gordon, 48, Anaheim, was indicted by the grand jury on Oct. 2, 2014. He was found guilty by a jury on Dec. 15, 2016, of four felony counts of special circumstances murder with sentencing enhancements for kidnapping and multiple murders. The OCDA announced on Dec. 11, 2015, that it would seek the death penalty against Gordon, and a jury recommended the death penalty for Gordon on Dec. 21, 2016.

Co-defendant Franc Cano, 30, Anaheim, was also indicted by the grand jury on Oct. 2, 2014, and is charged with four felony counts of special circumstances murder and four felony counts of forcible rape. The special circumstance sentencing enhancements are for murder during the commission of rape, multiple murders, lying in wait, and kidnapping. The OCDA announced on March 15, 2016, that it would seek the death penalty against Cano. He is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing on May 12, 2016, at 9:00 a.m. in Department C-40, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Continue reading→

Santa Ana man who sodomized a 3-year old girl re-sentenced to 25 years to life in prison

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE

Case # 14CF1874

Date: January 31, 2017

COURT OF APPEAL REVERSES TRIAL JUDGE’S ILLEGAL SENTENCE OF MAN WHO SODOMIZED TODDLER

*Defendant was originally sentenced to 10 years in state prison; court remands case for defendant to be sentenced to 25 years to life

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One reversed a trial judge’s illegal 10 year sentence for a man who sodomized a toddler and ordered the judge to impose the mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration. Kevin Jonas Rojano-Nieto, 21, was found guilty by a jury on Dec. 3, 2014 of one felony count of sexual intercourse or sodomy with a child 10 years or younger and one felony count of lewd acts upon a child under 14. His resentencing date is to be determined.

“The Orange County District Attorney’s Office applauds the decision by the Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One, which recognizes that the Legislature’s mandated punishment of 25 years to life for committing sodomy on a toddler is a constitutionally valid sentence designed to protect the most vulnerable victims in our community,” Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas stated. “This was a good day for child victims of brutal sex assaults and the People of Orange County.” Continue reading→

Former L.A. County Deputy Sheriff sentenced for molesting a 12-year old Costa Mesa girl

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A judge recently sentenced 26-year-old Jovanni Argueta, a former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy, to three years in prison, 180 days in jail and five years’ probation for molesting a 12-year-old girl in Costa Mesa in 2015, officials confirmed Monday, according to the O.C. Register.

Argueta pleaded guilty on Jan. 11 to lewd act with a minor, attempted sex with a minor and violation of a protective order. He was sentenced the same day. Unbelievably Argueta’s three-year prison sentence was suspended, according to the OCDA. And another count of contacting a minor with intent to commit a specified crime was dismissed as part of his plea deal. Continue reading→

Man charged with sexually assaulting three underage girls in Santa Ana

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Jose Manuel Escobar, a 32-year-old man, was charged Tuesday with sexually assaulting three underage girls in Santa Ana, according to the O.C. Register.

Escobar is facing six counts of committing lewd acts on a minor younger than 14 and two counts of lewd acts on a minor, along with sentence-enhancing allegations of having more than one victim and molesting multiple children.  Continue reading→

Santa Ana man charged with molesting a 4-year old relative for over a year

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Nelson Eduardo Garcia-Soloranzo, a 28-year-old Santa Ana man, was charged Friday with sexually assaulting a 4-year-old girl he is related to, according to the O.C. Register.

Garcia-Soloranzo was charged with two counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a minor younger than 14, three counts of intercourse with a minor younger than 10 and single counts each of incest and oral copulation on a child younger than 10, according to court records. He is also facing a sentencing enhancement for substantial sexual conduct with a minor, according to court records. Continue reading→

Registered sex offender pleads guilty to exposing himself to women on OCTA buses

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Stephen Ponte Garcia, a 37-year-old registered sex offender with a lengthy criminal record, pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges of exposing himself to female passengers on Orange County buses and was immediately sentenced to only three years in prison, according to the O.C. Register.

Garcia pleaded guilty to two felony counts of indecent exposure with prior convictions stemming from incidents on Sept. 28 and Oct. 5. Continue reading→