LI Man Sentenced To 23 Years After 'Brutal' Assault Of Girl, 10: DA

RIVERHEAD, NY — A Riverhead man was sentenced to 23 years in prison Thursday in the brutal sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Jose Carabantes Pineda, 37, pleaded guilty Feb. 24 to first-degree criminal sexual act, Tierney said.

Carabantes Pineda admitted that on March 20, 2021, he drove the girl to the parking lot of the Big Lots store in Riverhead, bound her with duct tape, and sexually assaulted her in the back of a minivan, Tierney said.

The child screamed and banged on the windows of the vehicle in hopes that someone would help her as she tried to fight him off, prosecutors said. A good Samaritan heard the child screaming from inside the minivan and knocked on the heavily tinted and fogged windows out of concern, Tierney said. He immediately called 911 and provided information about the vehicle to the Riverhead Police Department as he tried to follow behind the minivan, Tierney added.

Carabantes Pineda returned to his home, put the girl into a different vehicle and drove around with her so he could coach her into telling police, should she be questioned, that she was screaming because they had just sideswiped a car, prosecutors said.

Upon their return to his home minutes later, Carabantes Pineda was arrested by the Riverhead Police Department. During the investigation, pieces of duct tape that had been used to bind the child’s hands were recovered from both vehicles, Tierney said.

The child was brought to Peconic Bay Medical Center, where she underwent a sexual assault forensic examination, or SAFE. The evidence collection from the body of the child by the forensic nurse examiner led to the discovery of the defendant’s DNA on the child’s body, Tierney said

Further investigation revealed that Carabantes Pineda had been sexually abusing the child for months leading up to the incident, the DA said.

In addition to serving 23 years in prison, the judge also ordered Carabantes Pineda to 20 years of post-release supervision, Tierney said. He was represented by attorney Ian Fitzgerald.

“The bravery of this young victim to fight back against her abuser, the quick reaction of a good Samaritan, and the swift response by the Riverhead Police Department are the reason this predator was apprehended,” said Tierney. “The fact that there are individuals who prey on innocent children like this is just incomprehensible. But make no mistake, once we catch them, like this defendant, we will do everything in our power to ensure they serve a lengthy prison sentence.”