Jersey City Pastor Guilty Of Sexually Assaulting Girl, 10

JERSEY CITY, NJ — A 48-year-old Pentecostal pastor in Jersey City was found guilty last week of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl, according to the office of Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez.

A jury at the county courthouse found Orlando Martinez-Chavez, 48, of Jersey City, guilty of sex assault and endangering the welfare of a child. The trial only lasted for one day of testimony and the jury returned the guilty verdict last Thursday, Sept. 19 after three hours of deliberation.

Martinez-Chavez was a pastor at the Iglesia Pentecostal Lirio de los Valles church in Jersey City. The prosecutor said he sexually assaulted the 10-year-old girl in 2013; her parents were members of the church.

The Pentecostal church is located at 1146 Summit Avenue in the Jersey City Heights, and serves a large Spanish-speaking population.

Martinez-Chavez faces up to 10 years in state prison and must serve 85 percent of his sentence before he is eligible for parole. He has to register under Megan’s Law when he is released.