DA's office seeking retrial in 2018 child sex abuse case

Appeal-Democrat - 8/28/2021

Aug. 28—A man on trial for sexual abuse of a child between 2007 and 2016 failed to appear in court the morning after prosecutors presented evidence of the man's DNA found inside the crotch of the victim's clothing, according to Sutter County Assistant District Attorney Cameron King.

Antonio Velazquez, 48, was arrested on Jan. 19, 2018, after charges were filed against him in December 2017. The victim was five years old when the alleged abuse began. He posted bail in August 2018.

The trial continued without Velazquez after Sutter County Superior Court Judge Brian Aronson found that Velazquez had voluntarily failed to return to court. King said the jury could not reach a unanimous verdict and Aronson declared a mistrial.

"The defendant's current whereabouts are unknown to us," King said in an email. "... We intend to retry the case as soon as the defendant can be found, and a warrant will be issued to arrest him for failing to appear at trial."

As of late Friday, Velazquez had not been located. A trial setting conference is scheduled for Sept. 20 at 1:30 p.m. in Sutter County Superior Court.

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