(714) 997-4400
338
Isidro Medrano Garcia, a 42-year-old Bell Gardens man has been charged for kidnapping his girlfriend’s 15-year-old daughter and sexually assaulting her for 10 years.
Garcia met the alleged victim, who is now 25, when he was dating and living with the teen’s mother in 2004. Prosecutors
say he trained the victim by buying her gifts and taking her side when the victim and her mother quarreled. Prosecutors allege that Garcia repeatedly sexually assault the victim in the past ten years.
Between August 2004 and last month, prosecutors say Garcia told the victim her family did not want her and was not looking for her. She said when she tried to escape, Garcia beat her. He allegedly did not let her out of his sight, and in 2010, he got the victim pregnant. Garcia’s attorneys assert that Garcia was not holding the victim against her will, but adored her and treated her like a queen. Even going as far as to buy her a car.
Last month, the victim was able to contact her sister on Facebook. Then she walked into a Bell Gardens police station with her 3-year-old child, revealing the abduction. Garcia was taken into custody on Monday.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office on Thursday filed one felony count of forcible rape, three felony counts of lewd acts on a minor and one felony count of kidnapping to commit a sexual offense. Isidro Medrano Garcia appeared in court for his arraignment hearing, which was scheduled to continue June 9. His bail was set at $1 million and an immigration hold remains in place. If convicted, Garcia faces a maximum sentence of 19 years to life in state prison.