BishopAccountability.org | ||
Pastor Faces More Charges in Relationship with Teen Placentia Man Accused of Continuing to See 16-Year-Old Girl in Violation of Court Order By Kimberly Edds Orange County Register November 10, 2007 http://www.ocregister.com/news/tovar-girl-church-1920008-sexual-prosecutors FULLERTON - A married pastor accused of having sex in his church office with a 16-year-old parishioner is facing more charges of repeatedly meeting with his young accuser – a violation of a court order. A judge also sharply increased the pastor's bail, raising it from $150,000 to $750,000. Ronald Hernandez Tovar, 57, of Placentia has been charged with two counts of disobeying a court order. Tovar was originally charged with three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, oral copulation of a minor and sexual penetration by foreign object of a minor. Tovar is scheduled to go to trial on the charges Christmas Eve. If convicted, he faces up to five years and eight months in prison. Tovar is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old girl who attended his church, The Shadow of the Almighty church in Stanton, between Aug. 1, 2006, and Dec. 31, 2006. According to prosecutors, Tovar had sex with the girl several times in several places, including his church office in Anaheim Hills. After his initial arrest, Tovar posted $100,000 bail and was ordered by a judge to stay away from the girl. But between July 23 and July 30, prosecutors say, Tovar met with the girl at a bus stop. The rendezvous was seen by a friend of the girl's mother, who went to police. Tovar was charged with the first violation of a protective order, and bail was increased to $150,000. After Tovar's preliminary hearing in the sexual abuse case Nov. 6, the pastor drove to Montclair to meet the girl in a church parking lot, prosecutors said. He then drove the girl to her nearby Montclair home, where he was arrested by Anaheim police officers who had been tailing him, prosecutors said. Contact the writer: 714-796-7829 or kedds@ocregister.com |
||
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution. | ||