Las Vegas pastor indicted on lewdness charges tied to 9th victim
A Las Vegas pastor accused of sexually abusing young girls is facing new felony counts in connection with alleged acts that date back almost 13 years.
Bramwell Retana, 44, who remains jailed on $800,000 bail, was indicted Thursday on four charges of lewdness with a child under 14. Prosecutors said the charges, linked to a ninth victim, stemmed from encounters Retana had with a girl between August 2007 and October 2008.
He now faces a total of 59 felony counts.
In February, Retana was indicted on charges of sexual assault with a minor and use of a minor in producing pornography. Retana also is accused of separate counts of lewdness with a child younger than 14, first-degree kidnapping and child abuse.
Ana Villalobos-Casares, the wife of the pastor of Iglesia Cristiana Oasis De Paz, also has been indicted on one count of preventing or dissuading a witness or victim from reporting a crime, also a felony.
The Metropolitan Police Department has said it began investigating Retana last year after a girl told her parents that he had been sexually abusing her for more than a year. He was arrested Dec. 20.
In one of the most recent cases, a girl told police that Retana had instructed her to keep quiet after he touched her over her clothes during a youth Christmas event in 2016 at the church, which he and his wife founded at 2020 Michael Way in March 2004.
Contact David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Follow @randompoker on Twitter.