Temecula Dance Company Instructor To Be Sentenced For Sex With Minors

Temecula CA

25 May, 2022

3:44 PM

Description

TEMECULA, CA — A former Temecula Dance Company instructor is slated to be sentenced Thursday following his guilty pleas last month on three felony counts, including lewd acts with a minor. Eric Eustacio Saradpon, 43, was convicted April 22 on charges of sodomy with a person under 18, and two counts of a lewd act with a 14- to a 15-year-old child where the defendant is at least 10 years older, court records show. Saradpon worked at the Temecula Dance Company studio on Felix Valdez Avenue, according to Riverside County District Attorney's Office spokesperson John Hall. The crimes "involving minor victims associated with his work [as] a dance teacher [occurred] from 2007 to 2019 at Temecula Dance Company," according to a statement from the D.A.'s office. "As one of the dance teachers, Saradpon was entrusted with the health, safety, and emotional well-being of the minors at the studio and when in dance competitions across the country," the statement continued. "Instead, he engaged in a pattern of grooming, seducing, and molesting his victims." Saradpon was arrested by sheriff's deputies Oct. 12, 2020, at the Temecula Dance Company's Felix Valdez Avenue studio. As part of the investigation, deputies served a search warrant at a home in the 39000 block of Sundance Circle in Temecula. "Several evidence items were seized at the location," according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department. In the days following his arrest, Saradpon was released from custody in lieu of a $55,000 bail bond. Lani Morel, founder and co-owner of Temecula Dance Company, said in an emailed statement that when company officials learned of Saradpon's October 2020 arrest and charges, "his employment was immediately terminated." Morel further stated that Saradpon's crimes for which he was charged "did not take place at Temecula Dance Company or any of the company's sanctioned events. [Eric] had his own company, Formality Dance, which hosted the events in question." Morel said a background check was conducted on Saradpon before he was hired. Court records show the former instructor has no prior convictions in Riverside County. "The safety and well-being of our dancers and families [are] extremely important to us. Prior to hiring any teachers or other staff, a background check is conducted," Morel's statement continued. "All TDC classes take place in our studios during posted business hours with full administration staff on duty and many parents observing the classes. Classrooms all have large viewing windows and are regularly monitored throughout the sessions," Morel said. "Staff and dance teachers do not have keys to the studios. Only the owners and the director of operations have access to the building when it is not open. All TDC-sanctioned events are attended by multiple staff members and parents. No single staff member or parent is ever alone with minor students," the statement continued. "Since this incident, we require students who are attending dance functions with our instructors outside of TDC-sanctioned events to disclose that information — so all our staff and teachers are aware of the extracurricular dance activities and parents can take necessary precautions to keep their children safe. "Along with many others in our tight-knit community, we were deeply saddened to learn of the incidents at the defendant's Formality Dance events. We hope this outcome provides some closure for all the victims and that they will continue to heal and prosper," Morel said. Saradpon's 9 a.m. sentencing will be before Judge Timothy Freer in Dept. S301, Southwest Justice Center, 30755 Auld Road, Murrieta.