A 41-year-old man who sexually assaulted two Wildomar girls multiple times over a nine-year span pleaded guilty Friday to felony charges.
Jose Luis Rodriguez of Lake Elsinore admitted one count of forcible rape and one count of sexual assault on a child under 10 years old as part of a plea agreement with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office. In exchange for his admissions, prosecutors dropped six related charges.
The deal was reached just as Rodriguez’s case was called for a preliminary hearing at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.
Superior Court Judge Stephen Gallon scheduled a sentencing hearing for June 17, when the judge is expected to certify the terms of the plea deal and impose a sentence of 40 years to life in state prison.
Rodriguez remains held on $1 million bail at the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta.
He was arrested in February 2021 following a sheriff’s investigation into the defendant’s encounters with the victims, identified in court documents only as “I.R.” and “S.O.”
According to sheriff’s Sgt. Julio Olguin, deputies were contacted on Feb. 1 regarding a molestation in the 33000 block of Jameison Street in Lake Elsinore, as well as at a residence in the 21000 block of Lime Street in Wildomar.
In both instances, Rodriguez was identified as the perpetrator.
Olguin said that further investigation revealed a series of assaults on the girls, though no details were disclosed regarding their relationship, if any, to the defendant, or any of the circumstances connected to the crimes.
Court records stated that the children were victimized between January 2012 and January 2021.
Rodriguez had no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.