The DA’s office says that Samantha went to the Oxnard Police Department in 2019 and reported that her brother, who is about six years older than she is, raped her when she was eight years old. The DA says that Stephen threatened to kill Samantha if she ever told anyone about his crimes against her and that he “often [displayed] a knife prior to the sexual assaults.”
The DA’s office first filed charges in juvenile court, and the case faced delays as Nasarenko tried to transfer the charges to adult court. At one point, Stephen appealed the case returning to adult court. In the end, the California Court of Appeal sent the case to adult court for a jury trial, and last week, the defendant pleaded guilty to eight felonies.
“He also waived his appellate rights at the time of the plea, meaning he is barred from further appeals in this case,” said the DA’s office.
Stephen will be sentenced on June 27. Nasarenko plans to ask for a 30-year state prison commitment.
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Living Faith’s website is no longer active, nor is www.stegelasuccess.com, a site the Dela Cruzes had together. Living Faith’s Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram accounts, however, are still active at the time of this writing.
ChurchLeaders has reached out to Living Faith Church for comment and will update this article in the event of a reply.
“This is a day that I thought may never come, and I am thankful that this violent criminal will no longer be a threat to our community. I owe a debt of gratitude to District Attorney Nasarenko for staying on the case,” Samantha said, “and for his unrelenting support in my fight for justice. I also want to express my gratitude to the entire DA’s office, who work so hard to bring justice to victims like me and to protect our county.”
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