Business Owner Sexually Battered Customer During Spiritual Cleansing: Police

MARINA, CA — A Marina business owner faces multiple charges after a customer told police that the owner sexually assaulted her during a spiritual cleansing appointment, authorities said.

Diego Andres Alape, 40, of Santa Rosa, is charged with penetration with a foreign object and sexual battery by fraud, according to police.

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Officers responded on April 10 for a report of a past sexual assault at a business, and the customer told them she had been at Botanica Y Esperanza when Alape assaulted her during an appointment under the guise of the cleansing, police said.

Alape was found at the business in the 3000 block of Del Monte Boulevard around 2 p.m. May 4, taken into custody on a felony warrant and booked at Monterey County Jail on $100,000 bail, according to police.

A probe into possible violations of the business’s use permit and conducting of massages without proper licensing and certifications was ongoing, police said, noting in a department news release that Marina “recognizes and respects the cultural importance of these types of services.”

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call police at 831-384-7575 or anonymously call 831-884-1286.