NEW JERSEY
NorthJersey.com
Katie Sobko , Staff Writer, @katesobko December 23, 2016
A fugitive who was convicted of sexual offenses against a 13-year-old boy in 2015 is now in custody at the Hudson County Correctional Facility, authorities said.
Gregorio Martinez, 49, a pastor and deacon at several churches in Hudson County, was convicted by a Hudson County jury of sexual offenses against the boy, a parishioner at his church, in February 2015, Hudson County prosecutor Esther Suarez said.
Martinez was convicted of aggravated criminal sexual contact, endangering the welfare of a child and child abuse. Before the jury selection process, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office had filed additional sexual assault charges against Martinez in connection with the sexual assault of a 19-year-old man who attended the church where Martinez was pastor, Suarez said.
After the verdict was reached, new sexual assault charges were filed against Martinez, accusing him of offenses committed against two additional 19-year-old men whom he had spiritually counseled. He failed to appear for a mandatory pre-sentence interview after his conviction in the initial case and he fled the country. Suarez said he was traced through Panama, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Honduras.
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