Illegal immigrant sentenced for sexual battery
By Chris Dumond
cdumond@newsadvance.com
Tuesday, February 5, 2008


An illegal immigrant was sent to prison for 3½ years Tuesday morning after he was convicted of aggravated sexual battery in Bedford County Circuit Court.

Santos Wenceslao Guzman, 42, of El Salvador, entered an Alford plea to one count of aggravated sexual battery against an 8-year-old girl. The Alford plea allows a defendant to maintain his innocence while admitting prosecutors have enough evidence to convict him.

According to Bedford County Sheriff Mike Brown, Guzman was arrested after two 8-year-old girls reported they were fondled at the Goodwill store on Virginia 221 in Forest on Sept. 1. Gary Reynolds, chief of the sheriff’s office Child Sexual Offender Registration and Tracking Unit was off duty and in the area when the call came in.

Reynolds arrested Guzman as he was walking out of the store.

Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Wes Nance said Tuesday that Guzman will likely be deported to his home country after serving his sentence in a Virginia prison.

“Basically, we were able to verify he was in the U.S. legally at one time on a six-month valid visa,â€