A judge in Kingman ordered a ten-year prison term last Friday for a Bullhead City woman who failed to protect her young daughter from the man who molested her. Judge Billy Sipe’s sentence for Michelle Torrez, 36, was the maximum possible under terms of a plea agreement convicting her of a reduced charge of attempted child abuse.
Torrez was in a relationship with Ciprano Fass, the 33-year-old Bullhead City man who pled guilty to sexual conduct with a minor and to a reduced charge of attempted molestation of her eight-year-old daughter. Authorities alleged the inappropriate touching activity occurred in 2017 at a residence in the 2000 block of Buccaneer Drive.
The 20 year-prison term mandated in the Fass plea agreement was imposed by Judge Sipe on April 4.
Prosecutor Jacob Cote said Torrez kicked Fass out of their home when she
learned of the allegations but exposed her daughter to danger by allowing him
to move back in weeks later. Cote said Torrez should have known better since
another man previously molested another one of her kids.
Cote said he hopes that the Torres sentence serves as a deterrent in the child abuse arena and a reminder that mothers are required to notify law enforcement of suspicious activity and to protect their kids by separating them from predators.
