Man, 68, Sentenced For Raping, Sexually Assaulting Foster Daughters
SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — An Orange County man was sentenced Friday for raping, molesting and sexually assaulting six girls under his care as a foster parent.
Felipe Hernandez, 68, of Santa Ana will spend nearly 19 years to life behind bars. He pleaded guilty Feb. 13 to the sex crimes and to possessing child porn, Deputy District Attorney Whitney Bokosky said.
His wife, Maria Esther Hernandez, pleaded guilty to being an accessory and was sentenced in May 2013 to three months in jail, according to Bokosky. She has since been deported to Mexico.
She saw Hernandez raping one of the girls. She cut the victim's hair and threatened her not to tell anyone.
The sexual assaults came to light when a family member came across a video, in the summer of
2012, of the defendant molesting one of the girls, Bokosky said.
Hernandez used the foster parent program to recruit victims, Bokosky said, saying he "didn't want any boys, only girls." His victims were between five and 15 years old. They were under the couple's care between 2006 and 2012.
There were two more victims, also girls, who would have testified against Felipe Hernandez had his case gone to trial. He was not charged in those alleged attacks.
Related Story: Santa Ana Foster Parents Arrested In Alleged Rape Of Child
(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)