Fire Captain Pleads No Contest to Molesting Boys in Hollywood

A New York City Fire Department captain pleaded no contest today to lewd acts involving two 11-year-old brothers while he was visiting family members in Hollywood.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David M. Horwitz ordered Wilbert Riera, 52, to return to court on Oct. 8, when he is expected to be sentenced to 270 days in county jail and five years of probation, along with lifetime registration as a sex offender.

Riera “resigned (his job) yesterday in anticipation of this,” defense attorney Shawn Holley said outside court.

“Though I felt confident about our chances of prevailing at trial, there are no guarantees, and a guilty verdict would carry a life sentence. At the end of the day, Mr. Riera made the tough decision to plead no contest not only because it was in his best interest, but because it was in the best interest of all involved,” Holley said.

The boys’ mother told the judge, “We trusted him and he came into our lives and he betrayed that trust.”

Riera -- who spent nearly three months behind bars before being released on bond -- was charged last September with the crimes.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock