Local man sentenced to 784 years to life for child molestation

A Porterville man who was found guilty in late 2012 of sexually abusing four children between the ages of 6 and 15, has been sentenced to 784 years and eight months to life in state prison.

A Tulare County judge on Monday sentenced 49-year-old Frank Pineda for forcible lewd acts on a child under 14, lewd acts on a child under 14, oral copulation of a child under the age of 10, digital penetration of a child under 10, lewd acts on a child aged 15 and pandering. All of the crimes were committed in the Visalia area between 2006 and 2010.

Pineda was also convicted of failing to register as a sex offender, having been previously convicted of rape in 1997 and ordered to register as a sex offender for life. Prior “strike” and sex crime enhancements were also imposed at the time of Pineda’s sentencing.

The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Matthew Darby and investigated by detectives Chris Gezzer and Bobby Saldana of the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department, as well as investigator Brandon Hall of the District Attorney’s Office’s Bureau of Investigations.