DENVER (CO)
KDVR.COM Fox 31 [Denver, CO]
April 11, 2024
By Heather Willard
The Larimer County Sheriff’s Office arrested a former youth pastor in March on charges of sexually assaulting multiple children over the course of three decades.
The former youth pastor has been identified as Hipolito Gomez-Perdomo, 65, of Fort Collins. He was involved with the Vida Abundante church in northern Fort Collins, where he served as a youth pastor. Before that, Gomez-Perdomo lived in Fort Morgan and Houston.
Because of his position and the pattern reported by several victims, police are concerned that there may be additional victims who have yet to come forward.
“Sexual assault inflicts serious physical and mental harm on victims. It can be difficult to come forward, especially if the perpetrator is in a position of trust,” said Larimer County Sheriff John Feyen. “I’m grateful for the courageous young women who spoke up in this case. Their voices matter. At LCSO, we believe survivors deserve to be heard and supported.”
Because of new victims sharing their stories, the agency is sharing information about the former youth pastor and asking anyone with information about incidents involving Gomez-Perdomo to contact Travis Fischer at 970-498-5585, or by contacting the Crime Stoppers of Larimer County at 970-221-6868 or stopcriminals.org.
2019 allegations resurface, new victims come forward
The Larimer County Sheriff’s Office began investigating after a report was made in early 2023. A teenage victim identified Gomez-Perdomo and told police that he sexually assaulted her in the early 2000s when she was a child. LCSO said she told law enforcement that she did not report the assault because she was afraid of the repercussions.
She came forward, the sheriff’s office said, because she learned other teenagers had allegedly experienced similar abuse by Gomez-Perdomo.
The sheriff’s office investigators found Gomez-Perdomo was reported for sexual assault in 2019 by a different victim, but the district attorney’s office declined to file charges then. Gomez-Perdomo is alleged to have left the Vida Abundante church after these allegations.
Investigators said the 2019 case was reopened in conjunction with the newer allegations.
During this, another victim came forward, according to the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office. She described a similar pattern of abuse during the late 1990s that occurred when she was a young child. She told investigators that Gomez-Perdomo met her family through church and after he was a trusted family friend he assaulted her.
Gomez-Perdomo was arrested in March on five counts of sexual assault on a child from a person in a position of trust and one count of sexual assault on a child. He was booked into the Larimer County Jail and a judge issued a $200,000 cash or surety bond. Additional charges are pending.
The Larimer County Sheriff’s Office shared information about the Sexual Assault Victim Advocate Center in Fort Collins and Loveland, along with several other child advocacy and crisis advocacy groups.