Target of obsessed teen or sex predator? Fate of Clovis gym coach in hands of jury
The trial of Clovis gym owner Richard Alonso wrapped up Thursday with both sides offering vastly different versions of the relationship between him and his 16-year-old accuser
Alonso, who formally went by the name Lazaro, was charged last year with one count of misdemeanor child molestation and could spend up to a year in jail if found guilty. He would also have to register as a sex offender.
He’s accused of sending inappropriate messages to the 16-year-old, including wanting to have a baby with her.
During his closing statement, Deputy District Attorney Cameron Simoes said Alonso clearly crossed the line between coach and student. The alleged victim was a member of Alonso’s gym, Nemesis Sports Academy, where he helped provide fitness and weight training.
In 2019, Simoes said the 31-year-old Alonso was talking regularly with the teenager on social media apps like Snapchat and Instagram messenger. They also shared more than 100 cell phone calls, records show.
Perhaps the most damaging piece of evidence was a series of Instagram messages between Alonso and the teenager where they talked about being together and starting a family.
Alonso allegedly said: “Can we just have a baby now please. The alleged victim responds with “ya, I’m ready right now.” His response: “Ok come over then” and she said, “ok, coming.”
“What if you got pregnant first try,” Lazaro asked, according to a police affidavit.
Simoes told the jury Alonso’s attention to the teenager was not innocent or incidental, it was intentional.
“If I were to tell you that a 31-year-old was sending these messages to a 16-year-old girl, would it be problematic? Yes. Are they inappropriate? Yes,” Simoes said.
Alonso’s defense attorney Sally Vecchiarelli said her client was set up by the teenager who had developed an obsession with him.
Vecchiarelli said Alonso tried to help the teenager through some difficult times by counseling and supporting her.
“He listened to her problems and offered her encouragement,” she said. “Did he commit a crime? No, he did not.”
During her testimony earlier in the week, the teenager admitted to being infatuated with Alonso, so much so that she hoped his marriage plans wouldn’t work out.
Vecchiarelli asked her if she felt she and Alonso were supposed to be together.
“Yes,” the teenager answered.
Vecchiarelli said it is unlikely Alonso wrote those messages to the teenager, since many of them were not things he would have said.
“The messages were immature, they didn’t even make sense,” Vecchiarelli said. “If an older man is trying to seduce a younger girl the last thing he wants to do is get her pregnant. That is guaranteed prison time and a baby is proof of your crime.”
Vecchiarelli alleges the teenager used an app that allows users to create fake Instagram accounts, making it appear as though Alonso was sending her romantic messages. The alleged victim admitted to sharing one of those fake accounts with one of her friends.
Warrants were issued for Alonso’s phones and there was no evidence he sent those messages, the defense said.
“There is nothing to corroborate her version of events because it is not true,” Vecchiarelli said.
The jury began deliberating at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday.
This story was originally published April 22, 2021 at 5:04 PM.
