SLO County jury finds man guilty of sexually abusing 2 children
A San Luis Obispo County jury convicted a man of sexually abusing two children, according to the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Offic
After a four-day trial, jurors found Marco Antonio Navabarrera, 47, guilty of eight felony sex crimes, the District Attorney’s Office said in a Thursday news release.
Those crimes included sexual penetration with a child under age 10 and committing lewd acts on a child under 14.
“We are moved by the strength of these young survivors who reported what happened to them and then courageously testified in court,” San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said in a prepared statement. “We encourage anyone of any age to report when they have been abused. We stand vigilant to protect our community through effective advocacy to hold predators like this accountable for their crimes of abuse.”
Navabarrera’s crimes took place between 2015 and 2019, the District Attorney’s Office said.
“The jury ... made factual findings that Navabarrera’s crimes of lewd acts were committed on multiple victims who were under the age of 14,” the release said, noting that “these special allegations impose a sentence of 25 years to life in prison for each eligible offense.”
Navabarrera faces a sentence of up to 140 years to life in state prison plus three years and eight months, the District Attorney’s Office said.
He’s scheduled to be sentenced March 1 at San Luis Obispo Superior Court.
The case was investigated by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office with the assistance of the District Attorney’s Office’s Bureau of Investigation and the Child Abuse Interview Team, the release said. Deputy District Attorney Kristin Barnard prosecuted the case.