North Bay Man Sentenced To 100 Years For Molesting Young Girls

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — A Sonoma County Superior Court judge Tuesday sentenced a Petaluma
man to 100 years to life in California state prison for molesting two young girls his wife babysat in her in-home daycare, the Office of Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced. Pedro Ibanez, 46, was found guilty in November of four felony counts of molestation of a child younger than 14.

Prosecutors said the molestation began in 2008 when Ibanez's wife first starting taking children into her home for daycare. One of the victims was between 1 and 2 years old when her parents took her to Ibanez's home on occasion when they were at work. The girl was 11 years old when she reported the molestation to a school counselor, which in turn led to a Petaluma Police Department investigation.

During the trial, the victim, now 13 years old, testified that on several occasions when Ibanez was home he would take her into his bedroom and show her pornography, then molest her.

The police investigation revealed Ibanez molested a second young girl when she was between 4 and 6 years old. Now 12 years old, she testified that she too had been molested by Ibanez while at his house.

In Tuesday's sentencing hearing in Santa Rosa, the court heard powerful statements from both of the victims, as well as one of the girls' mothers.

During the sentencing, Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Bradford DeMeo noted the callousness shown by Ibanez toward the particularly vulnerable victims.

Deputy District Attorney Ashley Hendon led the prosecution against Ibanez, while District Attorney Investigator Robin Katz provided assistance.

Detective Walter Spiller headed up Petaluma Police Department's investigation of Ibanez.

Ibanez has remained behind bars in Sonoma County jail since his arrest Nov. 30, 2018.

— Bay City News Service contributed to this report.