| For Immediate Release January 19, 2006 |
Contact: | Susan Kang Schroeder Deputy District Attorney (714) 347-8408 Office (714) 292-2718 Cell |
SOCCER COACH TO FACE JUDGE ON CHARGES OF SHOWING PORNOGRAPHY AND SEXUALLY BATTERING HIS 16-YEAR-OLD MALE PLAYER
SANTA ANA — A Santa Ana coach for a traveling soccer team of 16-year-old boys will be in court for the first time tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. in C-55, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Melesio Juarez Lopez, 49, was charged earlier this month for victimizing one of his players.
Lopez will be arraigned on charges of felony attempted oral copulation of a minor, felony exhibiting pornography with the intent to seduce a minor, misdemeanor sexual battery, and misdemeanor distributing pornography to John Doe. If convicted of all charges, the defendant could be sent to state prison for three years and four months.
Lopez has been coaching soccer for about 10 years. He has been supervising boys on game days as well as going abroad on trips with the soccer team in the United States and Mexico.
On January 1, 2006, the defendant started the incident by making John Doe feel uncomfortable by talking to him about oral sex. The defendant is accused of taking the victim to his home, showing him a pornographic video, masturbating himself, masturbating John Doe’s penis on the outside his pants, and offering money to John Doe for oral sex. John Doe fled and immediately told his father who contacted the Santa Ana Police Department. The defendant is out of custody after posting $100,000 bail on Januarys 12, 2006.
Deputy District Attorney John Christl of the Sexual Assaults Unit is prosecuting this case. The Orange County District Attorney is looking for additional victims. Anyone with further information about defendant Melesio Lopez should contact District Attorney Investigator Eric Wiseman at 714-347- 8577.
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