A 42-year-old Bell Gardens man who was accused of sexually assaulting his girlfriend’s 15-year-old daughter for a decade was on Friday found guilty on three of five criminal counts he faced, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
A jury convicted Isidro Medrano Garcia of three felony counts of lewd acts on a minor, a news release from the DA’s office stated.
Garcia was found not guilty of one felony count of kidnapping to commit a sexual offense and hung on one felony count of forcible rape. The court dismissed the latter count at the request of prosecutors
Earlier, the DA’s office said the jury had acquitted Garcia on one felony count of forcible rape before issuing the updated the information.
At his April 15 sentencing hearing, Garcia faces four years and four months in state prison, the DA’s office said.
The unidentified victim testified in a Fullerton courtroom that she was introduced to Garcia in February 2004, when he lived with the then-teen and her mother at their home in the 800 block of South Fairview Street in Santa Ana (map).
Garcia “groomed” the 15-year-old girl starting in June of that year, buying her gifts and taking her side during arguments between the teen and her mother, according to the release.
She further testified that between June and August of 2004, Garcia kissed her and touched her buttocks. According to the victim, the defendant sexually assaulted her on three occasions, forcibly raping her at least once inside the home they shared.
Shortly after an alleged domestic violence incident between Garcia and the victim’s mother in August 2004, the suspect kidnapped the teen, she testified.
The victim said she was held against her will at a house in Compton and subsequently given a false identity.
Her mother reported the daughter missing.
Before the alleged abduction, the teen’s mother had told a neighbor that she believed her boyfriend was having sex with her daughter, the Los Angeles Times reported after Garcia’s arrest. She also thought they were planning to leave together.
For about 10 years, Garcia allegedly controlled the victim, threatening that if she called police, she would get her in trouble for using a fake name, which he had created for her, providing paperwork showing a false identity, according to the DA’s office. He kept a close eye on the victim, securing a job for her at the nighttime cleaning place where he was employed, and not letting her out of his sight.
The victim tried to escape, but she was caught and beaten, authorities said in May 2014.
She became pregnant with Garcia’s child in 2010 and gave birth to a girl, according to the release. The daughter is currently in her custody.
Previously, she told the Santa Ana Police Department that he also forced her to marry him.
The victim was able to contact her sister through Facebook in April 2014 and, after meeting with family members, went to the Bell Gardens Police Department and identified herself. The agency in turn contacted Santa Ana police.
