Local & Community
Man Who Assaulted Girls Across Region Set for Sentencing
INDIO (CNS) - A Palm Springs man who sexually assaulted multiple girls
throughout Riverside, Los Angeles and San Diego counties, enticing them
with illegal drugs and using them to make child pornography, is slated to be
sentenced today to 22 years in state prison.
Jesse James Garcia Airada, 29, pleaded guilty in August to two counts
of rape, three counts of contacting a minor for the purpose of perpetrating a
felony, and one count each of oral copulation of a minor, providing controlled
substances to a child, using a minor to produce child porn and penetration with
a foreign object, with a sentence-enhancing allegation of raping a minor.
The plea was negotiated with the Riverside County District Attorney's
Office, and in exchange for Airada's admissions, prosecutors dropped three
dozen related charges against him.
Superior Court Judge Dean Benjamini is expected to impose the sentence
stipulated by the prosecution and defense during the hearing Friday at the
Larson Justice Center in Indio.
Airada is being held without bail at the nearby Benoit Detention Center.
According to sheriff's Sgt. Chris Gelinas, in May 2025, deputies were
alerted to an assault involving an eastern Coachella Valley girl, and during
the investigation, Airada was identified as the assailant.
``It was learned the suspect had contacted multiple underage females
and was offering illegal substances in exchange for sex,'' Gelinas said after
the defendant's arrest last fall. ``Investigators were able to identify
multiple underage female victims throughout Riverside County.''
Court documents listed 8 victims in total, with prosecutors
saying that some of the girls were plied with marijuana and
cocaine to gain their trust and cooperation.
Assaults occurred from January 2024 to November 2025 in Riverside, Los
Angeles and San Diego counties, according to the criminal complaint.
Specific locations were not disclosed, and authorities didn't
elaborate on how the defendant initiated communication with the minors.
A search warrant was obtained and served on Airada last November at a
property in the area of Lawrence Crossley Road and Highway 111, where he was
taken into custody without incident.
He had no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.
.
By: City News Service
October 30, 2026
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