Man who confessed to sexually assaulting girl, 12, in Los Banos sentenced

A man has been sentenced to 40-years-to-life in prison for forcibly sexually assaulting and sodomizing a 12-year-old girl, according to the Merced County District Attorney’s Office.

A Merced County jury convicted Francisco Montes, 56, of four felonies including two counts of forcible lewd and lascivious act on a child under 14, aggravated sexual assault of a minor for sodomy and aggravated sexual assault of a minor for oral copulation, according to a Merced County District Attorney’s Office news release. Deputy District Attorney Sara Rosenthal prosecuted the case.

On June 24, Judge Jeanne Schechter sentenced Montes to 30-years-to-life with an additional 10 years for a total of 40 years-to-life in prison, according to the release.

According to the District Attorney’s Office, the Los Banos Police Department responded to Montes’ home for a report of sexual assault in October 2017. The 12-year-old girl had been alone visiting with the defendant, who the child called “uncle,” according to the news release.

The child reported and testified that the defendant moved her clothing to sexually assault and sodomize her. She also said that she fought back telling the defendant to stop and tried to move her clothing to cover her private areas, according to the news release. Montes was 54-years-old at the time.

According to the District Attorney’s Office, quick action by the Los Banos Police Department preserved crucial DNA evidence and secured a confession from the defendant.

This story was originally published June 25, 2020 at 5:43 PM.