A federal grand jury in Fresno has indicted former California Superior Court Judge Adolfo Corona, 66, on five counts that include sexual assault and obstruction of justice. The charges stem from incidents involving two court employees during his tenure as a judge.
According to the indictment, Corona is accused of leading a court employee, referred to as Victim 1, into a courthouse stairwell on March 14, 2024, where he allegedly sexually assaulted her. The indictment also alleges that Corona made false statements about this incident to both FBI agents and court administrators.
The document further claims that Corona obstructed an investigation into separate allegations involving another court employee, referred to as Victim 2. On December 5, 2023, Victim 2 was reportedly found alone and unconscious in the judge’s chambers after being with Corona for approximately two hours. Prosecutors allege that Corona gave the FBI a false account by stating he left Victim 2 alone while retrieving a motorcycle and tried to persuade an employee at a motorcycle dealership to alter company records in support of his story.
“If convicted, Corona faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison on the sexual assault charge and 20 years on each of the obstruction charges. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt,” according to information released by authorities.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation along with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar for the Eastern District of California and Special Litigation Counsel Michael J. Songer from the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting.
Officials encourage anyone with information related to this case to contact their local FBI office or submit tips online at https://tips.fbi.gov.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division stated: “The Justice Department announced that a federal grand jury in Fresno returned a five-count indictment yesterday charging former California Superior Court Judge Adolfo Corona, 66, with federal offenses for sexually assaulting a court employee (Victim 1), making false statements to cover up the assault, and with obstructing the investigation into allegations that he sexually assaulted another court employee (Victim 2) in his chambers.”
U.S. Attorney Eric Grant for the Eastern District of California said: “This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.”
Special Agent in Charge Siddhartha Patel added: “Anyone with information about this investigation is encouraged to contact their local FBI office, call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324), or submit a tip to tips.fbi.gov.”
