ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE
Case # 17HF0707
Date: May 30, 2017
YOUTH MINISTRY MENTOR CHARGED WITH COMMITTING LEWD ACTS ON TWO JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL BOYS
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A youth ministry mentor was charged today with committing lewd acts on two junior high school boys.
Defendant: Ruven Meulenberg, 32, Lake Forest
Charges:
LAKE FOREST, Ca. (May 26, 2017) – Orange County Sheriff’s Department Special Victims Detail investigators on Thursday, May 25, arrested Ruben Meulenberg, a 32-year-old youth mentor at Saddleback Church on suspicion of inappropriate relations with at least two juveniles.
SVD investigators on Wednesday, May 24, were contacted after patrol deputies took a report alleging a man working as a junior high youth mentor with Saddleback Church in Lake Forest had an inappropriate relationship with a 14-year-old boy. Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE
Case # 15HF1452
Date: December 9, 2016
FORMER PASTOR SENTENCED TO TWO YEARS IN PRISON FOR SEXUAL BATTERY OF FOUR FEMALE CHURCH MEMBERS
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A former pastor was sentenced today to two years in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration for sexual battery of four female church members. Sean Patrick Aday, 39, Lake Forest, pleaded guilty on Nov. 4, 2016, to two felony counts of sexual battery by restraint and two misdemeanor counts of sexual battery.
At the time of the crime, Aday was working as a youth pastor at Grace Community Church in Lake Forest. The defendant sexually assaulted four adult female church members on church property or during church trips overseas. Continue reading
Contacts: Lt. Mark Stichter, 714.904.7042, MKStichter@ocsd.org; Carrie Braun, 714.552.5795, CBraun@ocsd.org
DUI Enforcement Operations Planned this Weekend
SANTA ANA, CA (April 8, 2016) – Deputies from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department’s DUI Task Force will be deploying this weekend to stop and arrest alcohol and drug-impaired drivers in the department’s ongoing traffic safety campaign. DUI Saturation Patrols will deploy on Friday, April 8th at 7:00 p.m. and continue until Saturday, April 9th at 3:00 a.m. in the cities of Mission Viejo, Lake Forest and Rancho Santa Margarita.
“This is a ‘Zero Tolerance’ crackdown so Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over!” said Deputy Manuel Cruz from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Traffic Bureau. Continue reading
Orange County Sheriff’s Department
SPECIAL BULLETIN: MISSING HANDGUN AND BACKPACK
DESCRIPTION: 45 caliber handgun, possibly in a black backpack
LOCATION: Near the vicinity of the Aliso Creek Bike Trail, possibly in the creekbed or surrounding area between Trabuco Road and Jeronimo Road
On Monday February 15, 2016 an incident occurred along the Aliso Creek Bike Trail near Trabuco Road. Suspect Edgar Valdivia requested the use of a cell phone from another person along the trail, and while on the phone, Valdivia fired a round from a .45 caliber handgun into the creek bed. Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE
Case #12HF2093
Date: February 8, 2016
WESTMINSTER, Calif. – A former church assistant was convicted today of molesting two girls under the age of 14 after befriending their families through the church. Branden Edward Shumate, 37, Koloa, Hawaii, was found guilty by a jury today, Feb. 8, 2016, of three felony counts of lewd acts upon a child under the age of 14 with a sentencing enhancement allegation for committing lewd acts upon multiple victims. Shumate faces a maximum sentence of 45 years to life in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration at his sentencing on March 25, 2016, at 1:30 p.m., in Department W-9, West Justice Center, Westminster.
Between Sept. 13, 1997, and Sept. 12, 1998, the defendant, then 18 years old, worked as an assistant in a church where his father was a pastor and leader of the church in Lake Forest. During that time the defendant organized a trip to an Irvine water park for members of the church. Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE
Case #12HF2093
Date: January 20, 2016
WESTMINSTER, Calif. – A former church assistant is scheduled to face trial for molesting two girls under the age of 14 after befriending their families through the church. Branden Edward Shumate, 37, Koloa, Hawaii, is charged with three felony counts of lewd acts upon a child under the age of 14 with a sentencing enhancement allegation for committing lewd acts upon multiple victims. If convicted, Shumate faces a maximum sentence of 45 years to life in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration. Opening statements are scheduled to begin tomorrow, Jan. 21, 2016, at 8:30 a.m., in Department W-9, West Justice Center, Westminster.
Between Sept. 13, 1997, and Sept. 12, 1998, the defendant, then 18 years old, is accused of working as an assistant in a church where his father was a pastor and leader of the church in Lake Forest. During that time the defendant is accused of organizing a trip to an Irvine water park for members of the church. Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE
Case # 15HF1452
Date: December 3, 2015
SANTA ANA, Calif. – The Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) is seeking the public’s help identifying potential additional victims of a former church pastor charged with forcibly raping a female church member and sexually abusing three other female church members. Sean Patrick Aday, 38, Lake Forest, is charged with one felony count of forcible rape, one felony count of sodomy by force, one felony count of sexual penetration by foreign object and force, three felony counts of sexual battery by restraint, and four misdemeanor counts of sexual battery. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 29 years in state prison. He is out of custody on $500,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow, Dec. 4, 2015, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-55, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.
At the time of the crime, Aday was working as a youth pastor at Grace Community Church in Lake Forest. He is accused of sexually assaulting four adult female church members on church property or during church trips overseas. Continue reading
Sean Patrick Aday
NEWS, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: Lt. Jeff Hallock, 714.904.7042. JHallock@ocsd.org; Carrie Braun, 714.647.1848, CBraun@ocsd.org
Investigators Seek Additional Victims of Sexual Assault Suspect
LAKE FOREST, Calif. (November 7, 2015) – On Friday, November 6, 2015, Orange County Sheriff’s Department Special Victim’s Unit investigators arrested Sean Patrick Aday, 38, Lake Forest, on charges related to multiple incidents of sexual assault. Aday was arrested during a traffic stop following several weeks of investigation that included interviews with several female victims.
In October 2015, Sheriff’s investigators were contacted by a female victim indicating she had been sexually assaulted by Aday while he worked as the youth pastor at Grace Community Church in the City of Lake Forest. During the course of the investigation, several other victims were contacted, each indicating they had been sexually assaulted by Aday over the course of the last several years while he was employed as the youth pastor at Grace Community Church. The sexual assaults occurred inside the church, on church property, in various places in Orange County and during church sponsored international trips (Costa Rica, Moldova & South Africa). Continue reading
NEWS, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: Lt. Jeff Hallock, 714.904.7042, JHallock@ocsd.org
Carrie Braun, 714.647.1848, CBraun@ocsd.org
Bank Robbery Suspect Arrested
LAKE FOREST, Calif. (September 21, 2015) – On Monday, September 21, 2015, Orange County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Chandler Graham, 52, Los Angeles, in connection with an armed robbery at the Eagle Community Credit Union located at 23021 Lake Center Drive, in Lake Forest. Graham was arrested near the intersection of Red Hill Avenue and El Camino Real in the City of Tustin, following a short vehicle pursuit.
At approximately 10:46 a.m., Sheriff’s deputies responded to the Eagle Community Credit Union for a report of a robbery in progress. Responding deputies were provided a description of Graham and indicated he left in a tan or gold sedan. Approximately six minutes later, a deputy observed the vehicle matching the description travelling northbound Interstate 5, approaching Sand Canyon Road. The vehicle exited Tustin Ranch Road and a short vehicle pursuit ensued before the vehicle yielded near Red Hill Avenue and El Camino Real in the City of Tustin. Graham, the driver and lone occupant in the vehicle, was taken into custody without incident or injury. Continue reading