The pastor of a California church for Central American immigrants has been arrested and is being held on $10 million bail following allegations of sexual abuse by 4 victims who’ve come ahead with their claims to authorities.
Pastor Victor Hernandez-Pineda, 53, pleaded not responsible Jan. 17 in Contra Costa County Courtroom to 16 expenses of sexually abusing 4 victims, in line with KGO-TV's Dan Noyes.
Prosecutors charged him with 16 felonies, together with a number of counts of aggravated rape of a kid below the age of 14, aggravated rape of an individual over the age of 14, lewd and lascivious acts within the molestation of kids and youngsters.
Hernandez-Pineda is the pastor of Iglesia Pentecostes Momiento De Gloria in Richmond, East Bay.
Pablo Cifuentes, a senior church official, found that Hernandez-Pineda had sexually abused his daughter, Karen. Cifuentes advised KGO in December that his 21-year-old daughter not too long ago knowledgeable him and her mom that Hernandez-Pineda sexually abused her when she was 13. He claims the pastor advised her it was “God's will” for them to have intercourse. .
“He mentioned I used to be his 'pal'. He mentioned I used to be his “proper hand”. However after I came upon, he pissed me off,” he mentioned.
Karen Ciuffuentes claims Hernandez-Pineda sexually abused her 5 instances over three years. She recalled that the pastor posed as a member of the family to choose her up from faculty and produce her to motels to sexually abuse her.
In an interview with KGO, she recollects the primary time he took her to a resort close to her faculty.
“And at that time I advised him I didn't really feel protected,” she advised KGO, including that she defended herself as a result of he was married, a lot older and her pastor. “I didn't really feel good and that we shouldn't do it. However he made me do it.”
The 21-year-old hopes Hernandez-Pineda goes to jail.
“I don't really feel protected. He might harm me as a result of I'm asking for assist,” she mentioned. “And he might discover out and harm me. What he did was flawed. It's not proper and I would like the police to behave.”
“It completely modified my life mentally. I used to be lifeless. It killed me,” Cifuentes added. “I didn't suppose the identical. My grades bought worse. At residence I used to be indignant with my dad and mom. I used to be appearing out. I couldn't inform my dad and mom something. However I used to be at all times afraid.”
Cifuentes' mom, Sonia Gonzalez, advised KGO that she had a tough time believing what her daughter advised her concerning the sexual abuse.
“It was onerous. My daughter was very younger. I believed it was my fault for confiding in him. We went to that church searching for love, we seemed for assist and we discovered it. However in the long run we had been broken.” ” she mentioned.
The household has since left the church and has no plans to return.
“Once I came upon from my daughter's lips what occurred to her, I needed to seize him and make him disappear. However I additionally understood that if I did it with my very own fingers, I’d get into bother,” mentioned Pablo Cifuentes.
As a substitute of retaliating, the daddy filed a report with the Richmond Police Division. However the police didn't hear again from him, so he contacted Noyes and the KGO I-Group.
Different victims have come ahead with extra allegations of sexual assault in opposition to Hernandez-Pinedy.
Joseline Alvarez, 16, got here ahead and claimed she was sexually touched in opposition to her will in November when the pastor requested to fulfill her privately in an upstairs room on the church.
“He hugged me, like very tight, like he didn't need to let me go. After which he began to form of contact my thigh. … After which he took my hand and put it on his thigh,” Alvarez mentioned.
She added that the pastor tried to kiss her, prompting her to depart the church constructing.
“I simply didn't know what to suppose as a result of he's a pastor; why would he do that to me?” she mentioned.
Alvarez's mom feels torn and has additionally left the church.
“It anxious me quite a bit as a result of I felt one thing worse was going to occur to her. I bought indignant. It made me very indignant as a result of he's a pastor. It's not proper what he did,” mentioned the mom.
Hernandez-Pineda's church as soon as averaged 150 congregants for its companies. However with a number of allegations of sexual assault, church attendance declined.
Nicole Alcindor is a reporter for The Christian Publish.
Free, to launch Spiritual Freedom Replace
Be part of hundreds of others and get it ALLOWANCE OF FREEDOM free e-newsletter despatched twice weekly from The Christian Publish.
