A preacher in Stafford who was charged with sexual assault told the jury that the devil made him touch the girl in November 2021.
A jury in Fort Bend County found Gregorio Maldonado guilty, and on Monday afternoon, County Court at Law Judge Dean Hrbacek gave the 46-year-old Katy man the harshest punishment possible: one year in county jail and a $4,000 fine.
Michelle Anderson, the lead investigator, said that Maldonado’s victim was a member of the church in Stafford where he was pastor. The crime happened at a house in Katy where the woman and her family lived with the defendant.
Maldonado crept into the victim’s bed on November 9, 2021, after everyone else was asleep and started touching her improperly. He then made her touch him. Because the offender was important in the church and in her family, the victim was afraid to make her first complaint. In the end, the victim told her father about the attack in January 2022.
This caused Maldonado and the victim’s family to argue. The father of the victim taped the argument. Maldonado told the woman he was sorry, couldn’t remember what happened, and that if anything did happen, it was because the devil made him do it.
The defendant brought with him more than 100 people from his church after the hearing was over.
After the trial, prosecutors said, “The young woman he victimized stood strong as she always has and gave a victim impact statement in which she addressed the defendant and those in the courtroom.”
“She thanked the people in the church who had prayed for justice because it had been done.” Anderson, the prosecutor, was very angry with Maldonado.
Jones told The Herald, “The defendant abused his position of trust, and the victim has had to wait years for her day in court.”
“The defendant hurt her deeply, leaving scars that she can’t see. Some of these scars will last her lifetime.” But she is still alive. Now she wants to use what happened to her to help other victims. She is going to the police school to become a sexual crimes investigator.
Attorney General Brian Middleton said Monday’s conviction was a big deal.
“Up until 2019, indecent assault was a Class C offense, which is like getting a traffic ticket. That’s when the Texas Legislature made the crime worse,” he said.
So far, this is the first case of its kind to be tried in Fort Bend County. The decision and sentence showed that the people of Fort Bend County will not stand for this kind of disgusting behavior or gross power abuses.
Asst. District Attorneys Michelle Anderson and Collin Scovill tried the person in County Court.