Jose Carabantes Pineda was Arrested after a Passerby Who Heard the Child Screaming in the Back of a Minivan at the Big Lots parking lot in Riverhead Called Police (SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) – Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that defendant Jose Carabantes Pineda, 37, of Riverhead was sentenced to 23 years in prison after pleading guilty in February to Criminal Sexual Act in the First Degree. “The bravery of this young victim to fight back against her abuser, the quick reaction of a Good Samaritan, and the swift response by the Riverhead Police Department are the reason this predator was apprehended,” said District Attorney Tierney. “The fact that there are individuals who prey on innocent children like this, is just incomprehensible. But make no mistake, once we catch them, like this defendant, we will do everything in our power to ensure they serve a lengthy prison sentence.” According to the investigation and the defendant’s guilty plea, on March 20, 2021, Carabantes Pineda drove the 10-year-old victim to the parking lot of the Big Lots store in Riverhead, bound her with duct tape, and sexually assaulted her in the back of a minivan. The child screamed and banged on the windows of the vehicle in hopes that someone would help her as she attempted to fight the defendant off of her. A Good Samaritan heard the child screaming from inside the minivan and knocked on the heavily tinted and fogged windows out of concern. 2 He immediately called 911 and provided information about the vehicle to the Riverhead Police Department as he tried to follow behind the minivan. Carabantes Pineda returned to his home, put the victim into a different vehicle and drove around with the victim so he could coach her into telling police that she was screaming because they had just sideswiped a car should she be questioned. Upon their return to his home minutes later, the defendant was arrested by the Riverhead Police Department. During the investigation, pieces of duct tape that had been used to bind the child’s hands was recovered from both vehicles. The child was brought to Peconic Bay Medical Center, where she underwent a Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE). The evidence collection from the body of the child by the forensic nurse examiner led to the discovery of the defendant’s DNA on the child’s body. Further investigation revealed that Carabantes Pineda had been sexually abusing the child for months leading up to the incident. Carabantes Pineda pleaded guilty on February 24, 2023 to Criminal Sexual Act in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony, before the Honorable Judge Karen M. Wilutis. In addition to serving 23 years in prison, Judge Wilutis also ordered Carabantes Pineda to 20 years of post-release supervision. He was represented by Ian Fitzgerald, Esq. This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Tara Laterza and Macdonald Drane of the Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Bureau.