A Tarrant County jury has found Southlake resident Miguel Esteban Salinas guilty of both the Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child Under 14 and Indecency with a Child. He was sentenced to 64-and 18-year prison sentences, which Judge Mollee Westfall ordered to be served consecutively.
After moving into the home of his girlfriend and her children, Salinas appeared to outsiders to have taken the children under his wing, acting as an encouraging guardian and even coaching their athletic teams. In opening statements, lead prosecutor Anna Hernandez described Salinas as someone who “did so many things that made him seem like a good father figure, but he was the very definition of a wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
After two years, the oldest child began having behavioral issues and ultimately confided to a friend that Salinas had been sexually abusing her since joining the family. The child, now in her early teens, testified before the jury to the years of abuse by Salinas, telling jurors she kept the abuse secret for so long because she feared Salinas’ daughter who was also living with the family would be sent away if he went to jail.
“The jury’s verdict and the swift action of the Judge in stacking the sentences guarantees the defendant will be 114 years old before he is eligible for parole,” said Hernandez. “This speaks to the heinousness of this crime.”