The San Luis Obispo District Attorney's Office announced Monday that after a week long trial, a San Luis Obispo County jury found Jay Vee Batul Estoque guilty of committing a lewd act upon a child.
The DA's office says Estoque, 29, of Santa Maria committed the crime with a child who was under the age of 14.
According to a press release, Estoque committed the acts of sexual assault in Grover Beach between January 2011 and December 2012. Estoque was 20 years old at the time, and the victim was 11 years old.
Grover Beach Police say the crimes were not reported to them until March of 2018, when the victim was 17 years old.
"We thank the jury for their efforts in this sensitive and emotional case," said District Attorney Dan Dow. "This young survivor demonstrated tremendous courage by reporting the crime after its effects were truly realized. We are optimistic that this conviction will encourage victims of sexual assault to report the conduct to law enforcement, even when substantial time has passed since the event. We stand ready to prosecute these deplorable crimes on behalf our community and to bring about justice for victims of child sexual abuse."
During the trail, the jury deadlocked on two additional counts of lewd act upon a child under the age of fourteen for acts alleged against the same child victim during the same time period.
A hearing is set for Wednesday Feb. 5 for a determination of whether the counts on which the jury was unable to reach a verdict will be retried.
Estoque is in custody at the San Luis Obispo County Jail. His sentencing is scheduled for March 4. Estoque faces a maximum term of eight years in state prison.
