Fresno County church minister arrested for alleged child sex crimes
This isn't the first time that Villalobos has been caught up with sex crime charges. He is listed as a registered sex offender.
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Fresno County Sheriff's Office has arrested a 64-year-old church minister for allegedly committing sex crimes with a child.
Bernardino Villalobos owns the La Obra De Jesus Christian Church in Del Rey and serves as the minister there.
Investigators fear there may be more victims connected to him.
Investigators say they found enough evidence to arrest Villalobos after one victim came forward to the sheriff's office, claiming they were sexually abused by Villalobos in 2017. That victim is still underage today.
Investigators found enough evidence to take Villalobos into custody on one charge of committing lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 years old.
This isn't the first time that Villalobos has been caught up with sex crime charges. He is listed on the Megan's Law website as a registered sex offender.
His offenses are listed as rape by force and sodomy by force. He was convicted in 1993, served time in prison and was released in 1994.
It's unclear how long ago Villalobos opened his church.
Sheriff investigators believe that because Villalobos has a large following, it's likely there are other cases that have been unreported.
They believe there may be more victims, and are urging them to come forward.
If you have information to help with this investigation, call Detective Andrew Moreno at (559) 600-8222 or (559) 600-8144. You can also contact Crime Stoppers at (559) 498-7867 to stay anonymous.
