Manhunt For Kidnapper Who Raped OC School Girl, 13, Ends In Arrest: OCDA

ANAHEIM, CA — A registered sex offender charged with kidnapping a 13-year-old Orange County girl and repeatedly raping her was captured in Guatemala as part of a multi-jurisdictional effort, authorities said Wednesday.

Anaheim resident Brian Estuardo Verbena-Martinez, 34, was found and arrested last week, according to Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer.

He is accused of driving next to the victim while she was walking in Westminster on Dec. 5, 2025, and offering her a ride. Spitzer said Verbena-Martinez became more and more aggressive toward the girl until she got into his car.

Verbena-Martinez then allegedly sexually assaulted the girl in multiple locations, including in several parking lots and his apartment while other children were home, before finally dropping the girl off at her friend's home in Garden Grove, prosecutors said.

He has been charged with one felony count of kidnapping to commit a sex offense, one felony count of forcible rape, one felony count of sexual penetration of child under 14 years of age by force, one felony count of forcible oral copulation with a minor under the age of 14 years old, and three felony counts of lewd act upon a child under 14.

He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted on all charges.

Verbena-Martinez is a registered sex offender after being convicted in 2019 in Los Angeles County of arranging to meet a minor with the intent to engage in sexual conduct, prosecutors said.

"The crimes alleged against Verbena-Martinez are beyond horrific and something the young victim in this case must tragically endure," said Akil Davis, the assistant director in charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office.

"This is the third announcement of a fugitive returned to Orange County this year from countries including Mexico, Vietnam and Guatemala, based on the successful relationship with the FBI, our law enforcement partners in Orange County, our foreign counterparts and the U.S. Department of Justice. The FBI will continue to assist local police when fugitives flee the state of California to evade capture."

Deputy District Attorney Tom Farnell of the DA's Sexual Assault Unit is prosecuting the case.