SOLEDAD — Soledad resident Rosalio Rocha was sentenced Tuesday to 18 years in prison for committing two counts of child molestation upon two victims.
According to the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office, both offenses are violent felonies and are considered “strikes” under California’s Three Strikes law. In addition to his prison sentence, 56-year-old Rocha was ordered to register as a sex offender for life.
In August 2020, Jane Doe 1 told a friend that Rocha, a family member, molested her when she was under 14. Jane Doe 1’s friend informed another individual, who then reported the molestation to the Soledad Police Department.
Detective Gustavo Gomez interviewed Jane Doe 1 who stated that Rocha “molested her on several occasions, mostly over the clothing,” the Monterey County DA’s Office stated in a news release.
Through Gomez’s investigation, he discovered that another individual, Jane Doe 2, had previously reported that Rocha, also a member of her family, molested her when she was under 14.
In July 2010, Jane Doe 2 informed deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department that Rocha molested her between 2008 and 2009 in Los Angeles County.
“Most of the molestation described by Jane Doe 2 occurred over the clothes,” the release stated.
Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file charges in 2010. Gomez reopened the investigation in September 2020 regarding the molestation of Jane Doe 2.
In October 2020, the Los Angeles County DA’s Office agreed to cede jurisdiction over the molestation of Jane Doe 2 to the Monterey County DA’s Office. Pursuant to statute, this permitted the Monterey County DA’s Office to prosecute Rocha for his molestation of Jane Doe 2 in Los Angeles County.
