California police arrested the 14-year-old girl’s father and grandfather. died due to neglect after the two allegedly sexually assaulted her.
The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office said they were called to a home in Goshen by a girl complaining that she couldn’t breathe properly. When she arrived, the two men who had been at her home said there was no girl inside.
Two hours later, they called police and said the girl was found unresponsive in a back room of the house.
The 14-year-old girl was taken to the hospital, where she later died.
Investigators said the girl showed numerous signs of abuse and neglect, including numerous scars.
“A 14-year-old is a child, and the condition in which she was found was a horrifying indication of what happened to her,” said Ashley Ritchie, a media specialist with the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office.
After investigating, police believe she was sexually assaulted by her 50-year-old father, Raymond Pena, and her 64-year-old step-grandfather, Brett Minkler.
“Her own father sexually abused her for several months, probably longer,” Ritchie said. “Left her girlfriend on the bed like an animal and let her own step-grandfather die.”
Police believe the girl has not left her bed since November. They were able to collect video evidence of abuse.
Ms Ritchie continued: “A surveillance camera was found inside the home. It was a family member’s surveillance camera that captured many of the disturbing events that took place in the home before the girl died.”
Ritchie also said two men had sexually assaulted an 11-year-old girl who visited the home. They are working to identify which other girls may have been assaulted at their homes.
The two were arrested and held at the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office Adult Pretrial Facility. They are charged with felony child abuse resulting in death and murder.
“She had a lot of untreated health problems for years that led her body to that state,” Ritchie added of the 14-year-old.
According to KFSN TV’s neighbors, the two had refrained from going out. They expressed shock at the allegations.
Police say the mother and grandmother of a 14-year-old girl died two years ago, just two months apart. Visalia Unified School District confirmed to KFSN that one student had died.
Goshen is a small town of about 5,400 people located between Bakersfield and Fresno.
Here are reports about this horrific incident:
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