Combined 103 to Life in Prison for 2 Rapists; Another Looks at 95-to-life

A man was sentenced last week to 80 years to life in state prison for sexually assaulting girls ages 7 and 13.

Another got 23 years to life in the joint for pimping out a 13-year-old girl, the youngest victim since the 2013 establishment of the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF).

A Chino Hills man was found guilty by a jury of posing as a cop in a Fullerton nightclub parking lot, ordering a woman to take a drunk test, forcing her into his vehicle, binding her hands and feet and eventually raping her.

Another dude copped to burglary in a plea deal that had charges dismissed of using a cellphone to videotape an 8-year-old girl using a church bathroom.

Jose Luis Gonzalez, 65, of Anaheim, had been found guilty by a jury on June 7 of 10 felony counts of lewd acts upon a child under 14 as well as sentencing enhancements for substantial sexual conduct with a child and multiple victims. Besides the 80 years to life in the can, he must register as a sex offender for life—not that he’ll be getting out in time to knock on any neighborhood doors. As previously reported here, Gonzalez had a partner in crime: Benjamin Avila, 31, of Anaheim, who pleaded guilty on April 14, 2015, to eight counts of lewd acts upon a child under 14. He was sentenced to 15 years in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration (so he should still have time to knock-knock-knock). Between April 1998 and January 2000, Gonzalez sexually assaulted the 7-year-old, who he knew very well, multiple times. In March 2013, Avila contacted the 13-year-old online and groomed her for a sexual relationship. Between March and August 2013, Avila and Gonzalez swapped committing lewd acts on her, on multiple occasions. In October 2013, the teen’s contact with the men was reported to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, which launched an investigation that led to the arrests of Avila and Gonzalez and the case involving the older man’s youngest victim.

John Wayne Calhoun, 31, of San Bernardino, was found guilty by a jury—as previously reported here—on Aug. 14 of a laundry list of felonies: two counts of lewd acts upon a child under 14, human trafficking of a minor, pimping a minor, pandering with a minor under 16 years old by procuring, oral copulation of a child under 14, unlawful sexual intercourse and a sentencing enhancement for human trafficking by force or fear as well as a prior 2012 felony conviction for inflicting corporal injury upon a spouse or cohabitant in San Bernardino County. Besides spending 23 years to life in state prison, Calhoun must register as a sex offender for life. He met the 13-year-old girl before June 1, 2016, and he convinced her to engage in commercial sex acts for his benefit. He forced her to give him money that she received from sex purchasers. He supervised her as she performed sex acts, teaching her how to delight john with moves that would generate more money—for Calhoun, not her. He drove her to areas known for prostitution and human trafficking in Orange County and other parts of California. Around 3 a.m. on June 2, 2016, she was contacted in one of these areas by Santa Ana police officers. She had a black eye, multiple bruises and a scar on her arm, all caused by Calhoun. With her help, cops found and arrested Calhoun. At his sentencing on Friday, several OCHTTF members were present in court to support the teen victim, as well as organizations such as Bikers Against Child Abuse and local law enforcement partners, the Orange County District Attorney’s office reports.

Nelson Mauricio Lunaty Garcia was found guilty by jury last week of felony kidnapping to commit a sex offense, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by foreign object and force, sodomy by force, attempted forcible rape, attempted kidnapping to commit a sex offense, misdemeanor carrying a loaded firearm on person or in vehicle in public place, four counts of assault as well as sentencing allegations for substantially increased risk of harm to the victim and kidnapping. The 34-year-old Chino Hills resident could get 95 years to life in state prison at his Sept. 27 sentencing. On the night of Sept. 2, 2015, Garcia approached the woman in the InCahoots parking lot. She believed he was a peace officer asking if she had been drinking, administering a fake “field sobriety test,” using a tongue compressor and a Q-Tip, and forcing her into the backseat of his vehicle. That’s where Garcia bond her hands together with zip ties before driving for several miles to a secluded location, where he sexually assaulted her every which way. Afterwards, Garcia returned her to the InCahoots parking lot. It turns out that earlier that same evening, Garcia approached a different woman sitting in her car alone in the Incahoots lot. He asked whether she had been drinking, if she needed water, and if she needed a police escort home. She declined and drove away. On Sept. 9, 2015, two friends of the sex-assault victim saw Garcia in the Incahoots parking lot and contacted the Fullerton Police Department. That agency’s officers found and arrested Garcia at the scene. He had with him a loaded gun, handcuffs, tongue depressors, Q-Tips and zip ties.

Yi Woo Ju had been accused of the peeping incident that happened Aug. 2 at Bethel Korean Church in Irvine, where the 8-year-old girl was attending a camp program. She would tell the Irvine Police Department that when she went to the church restroom, a man followed her in and, as she began to relieve herself, a cell phone was slipped under the stall to videotape her. A teacher, who was nearby, heard the girl crying and confronted the man, who ran off and in a car. The girl’s mother got either all or part of his license plate number, which police used to track down Ju. For pleading guilty Tuesday to burglary, Ju was immediately sentenced to 120 days in jail and placed on three years of formal probation. Misdemeanor charges of possession of a controlled substance, videotaping another in partial dress, identity theft, child annoyance and possession of a controlled substance were dismissed.