Attorney disputes ID in 'Arroyo Molester' trial

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - One alleged victim of the "Arroyo Molester" testified Friday that Genaro Sandoval is the man who sexually assaulted him nearly 10 years ago in an Albuquerque drainage channel.

But Sandoval's attorney attacked a key part of what the victim had to say.

In 2003 the victim was a sixth grader at Hoover Middle School.  On Friday jurors heard details of the attack from the now-21-year-old college student.

From his daily routine to why he decided to walk home from school that August 2003 day, the victim laid out his life as an 11-year-old and what happened when a man approached him on his walk home.

"It changes you," the victim said in court. "It changes how you think and changes how you care for the people you love."

The victim testified he was lured into the arroyo by a man wanting to pull a prank by writing on the concrete, but says he felt trapped underneath the bridge.

"I mean, I can't go anywhere," the victim testified. "Even if I say no, there's... I'm not getting out; I'm not getting out of this situation."

He said the attack was briefly interrupted by another student passing through, but he didn't cry for help because his attacker had a gun.

From the witness stand the victim identified Sandoval as that attacker.  Yet while Sandoval's attorney doesn't deny an assault occurred, but he took issue with the victim pointing at Sandoval.

"You've had multiple times to watch Mr. Sandoval on TV," attorney Joseph Riggs said during his cross-examination.  "Never before today have you ever picked out a photograph of him or identified him. Isn't that true?"

The victim responded, "I believe that to be true."

Sandoval wasn't charged until 2007 when investigators say his DNA was matched to a sample taken from the victim's clothing. Sandoval's attorney is trying to cast doubt on that evidence.

Both of the victim's parents took the stand talking about their son's calm demeanor after the attack, and how difficult it was for them as a family to move past the attack.

Sandoval is also accused in four other cases. He will be tried separately on those.

The trial recessed Friday and will resume Tuesday.