Crime & Safety

Maplewood Man, 26, Sexually Assaulted 2 Girls In Oakdale: Police

The girls were 9 and 10 years old at the time of the assaults, according to authorities in Washington County.

STILLWATER, MN — A Maplewood man was sentenced Friday to 12 years in prison after he was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. He will also serve a ten-year period of conditional release, and he will be publicly listed as a predatory offender for the rest of his life.

In May, Lorenzo M. Rodriguez, 26, pleaded guilty to first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

"Sex offenders who prey upon child victims present a threat to the safety and security of our entire community, and I am pleased that this particular offender received the lengthy prison sentence he deserved," said Washington County Attorney Kevin Magnuson in a news release.

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"Our office will continue to prioritize demanding justice against those who seek to victimize children to the fullest extent possible."

According to the criminal complaint, Rodriguez sexually assaulted two girls — ages 9 and 10 — from November 2015 to October 2016.

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The assaults occurred at multiple locations, including an apartment in Oakdale, police said.

The girls told their family members about the assaults, and a report was filed with the Oakdale Police Department in September 2019, according to investigators.

"It took tremendous bravery for the victims to not only tell their family members what had been done to them, but to be willing to tell the same to a jury had a trial been necessary," Assistant Washington County Attorney Marc Berris said.

"I can only hope that now that the case is concluded the victims and their family can begin to heal from the terrible damage so cruelly inflicted by the defendant."

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