A man was convicted on Feb. 22 for having sexual relationships with two teenage girls years apart in Santa Ana, impregnating one of them.
Alejandro Heredia-Santana, 52, was convicted of two felonies—unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and continuous sexual abuse of a child—with a sentencing enhancement for inflicting great bodily injury.
He was also convicted of two misdemeanors for disobeying domestic-relations court orders.
Heredia-Santana was a soccer coach in Santa Ana when he was arrested in March 2022.
Orange County Deputy District Attorney Sarah Rahman said one of the victims was sexually abused when she was 12 to 15 years old from 2005 to 2012, and the other was sexually abused from 15 to 17 years old and gave birth in August 2022 to a girl fathered by Heredia-Santana.
Rahman said the victims’ mothers were in relationships with Heredia-Santana.
A psychological expert testified that the sexual abuse was not reported earlier due to Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome.
One of the victims “was more concerned about her mother’s well-being than she was about herself,” Rahman explained at the trial.
“Two girls who were manipulated into believing loving him was having sex with him. ... The reality is it wasn’t anything more than an opportunity to take advantage of them,” Rahman said in her opening statement.
Heredia-Santana’s sentencing is set for April 19.
City News Service contributed to this report.
