Former Elementary School Teacher Pleads No Contest To Sexually Molesting Children
WILMINGTON (CBSLA.com) — A former teacher pleaded no contest to charges of sexually molesting children he taught at an elementary school in Wilmington, the LA County District Attorney announced Thursday.
Robert Pimentel, 58, taught 4th grade at George De La Torre Jr. Elementary.
Pimentel pleaded no contest to four felony counts involving four separate victims: one count of continuous sexual abuse and three counts of lewd acts on a child.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James B. Pierce scheduled sentencing and restitution for June 19 at the Los Angeles County Superior Court in Long Beach.
Under the terms of a negotiated plea agreement, the defendant is expected to be sentenced to 12 years in state prison, said Deputy District Attorney Lee Ashley Cernok.
The prosecutor said Pimentel also will be required to register as a sex offender and ordered to stay away from the victims for 10 years.
The defendant sexually abused multiple girls between 2002 and 2012, the prosecutor said. In March 2012, one of the victims, a student in the defendant's class, revealed to her mother that Pimentel had been inappropriately touching her.
That student, along with several others, reported the conduct to the Los Angeles Police Department. LAPD investigators then identified other victims, including a relative of the defendant's.
The case was filed in January of 2013. The defendant has remained in custody since his arraignment on January 24, 2013.
After his arrest, attorneys for Pimentel said his victims were driven by money.
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