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A 65-year-old Bellflower man accused of sexually assaulting four girls he is related to in Santa Ana, dating back to 1991, has died in custody.
Aurelio Garcia died March 8. He tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalized Feb. 3, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
Garcia was charged with assaulting the girls in November 1991, March 2000, March 2012 and May 2019, according to court records.
At the end of November 2019, the most recent alleged victim came forward to say Garcia had molested her when she was 5, which prompted seven other family members to allege they were also sexually assaulted, police said.
The other alleged victims said they were molested when they 5, 6, and 7 years old, police said.
Garcia was charged in May 2020 with three counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a minor younger than 14, three counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a minor, and two counts of sexual penetration by foreign object of a victim younger than 14, all felonies, according to court records.
The charges were dropped Tuesday because of Garcia’s death.