From the Office of the District Attorney
Martinez, California – A jury in Contra Costa County reached a verdict that convicted a Richmond pastor of various offenses related to the sexual assault of a child.
On February 4th, 2026, 52-year-old Emilio Alberto Esperanza-Pacheco was found guilty by a jury on five counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child under the age of 14 and 10 counts of forcible lewd acts upon a child. The offenses Esperanza-Pacheco committed on Jane Doe occurred between June 1st, 2023, and October 14th, 2023. The jury also found that the Defendant committed a forcible lewd act upon a child during the commission of a first-degree residential burglary.
At the time when the crimes occurred, Esperanza-Pacheco was employed as a pastor at God’s Lighthouse of Truth Church in Richmond, where Doe and her family were members and became friends with him.
Through the course of the trial, the prosecution presented the jury with evidence that Esperanza-Pacheco used his position with the church and his friendship with the family to silence the victim from telling anyone about the sexual assaults.
The victim eventually found the courage to tell her parents about the abuse. Richmond Police officers arrested Esperanza-Pacheco on October 14th, 2023, and booked him into custody, where he remained for the duration of the criminal legal proceedings.
Judge Danielle Douglas has set a sentencing date for Esperanza-Pacheco on April 9th, 2026, at 8:30 am in Martinez. He faces life without the possibility of parole.
District Attorney Diana Becton said, “The penalty the defendant is facing reflects the gravity of the
crimes committed against a child. While no outcome can undo the trauma suffered by the victim, we hope
the verdict provides some sense of justice and allows her and her family to move forward with a degree of
closure.”
