| For Immediate Release August 24, 2006 |
Contact: | Susan Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel (714) 347-8408 Office (714) 323-4486 Cell |
MAN WHO FAKED HIS OWN DEATH AND HID FOR
TWO YEARS TO BE SENTENCED FOR MOLESTING
A LITTLE GIRL
*Case featured on “America’s Most Wanted”
SANTA ANA – The man who faked his own death to evade justice will be sentenced tomorrow for molesting a child in his Lake Forest home. Daniel Farinholt, 45, was convicted of continuous sexual abuse and three counts of lewd acts upon a child under the age of 14. He will be sentenced tomorrow, August 25, 2006, at 1:45 p.m. in department C-43, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. He is facing 10 years in prison.
Between September 1, 1997 and June 30, 2000, Farinholt was a resident of Lake Forest and repeatedly molested a little girl, Jane Doe, in his home. After molestation charges were brought against him, Farinholt moved to Manhattan Beach, closer to his El Segundo office where he worked as a computer executive. Farinholt failed to show up for a court appearance in June of 2002, and his rented boat was later found a quarter mile off the coast of El Segundo, smeared with blood. His car was discovered abandoned nearby. Investigators believed that Farinholt had cut himself and dripped blood on the boat to fake his death and avoid the consequences of his crime.
In January of 2005, after two years of evading the law, Farinholt was arrested in Boise, Idaho. He was living under the fake name of Donald Dudley and working for a computer company. Boise Police received a tip regarding the whereabouts of Farinholt after he was featured on the television show “America’s Most Wanted.” He was extradited to Orange County to finally face charges for sexually assaulting Doe.
“Farinholt went to great lengths to avoid taking responsibility for his crimes,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Beth Carmichael of the Sexual Assault Unit who is prosecuting this case. “He was playing a game of hide-and-seek, but law enforcement was committed to seeking him out. We do not stop looking for predators.”
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office would like to thank the United States Marshals Service, El Segundo Police Department, Orange County Sheriff’s Department, United States Coast Guard, Boise Police Department, and Henry Hoskins Bail Bonds of Gardena for their work in bringing Farinholt to justice.
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