A Maryland pastor used the guise of spiritual oils and healing prayers to sexually assault two of his adult congregants while alone with each one in their church, according to allegations filed in court this week by Takoma Park detectives.

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       In the first case, dating back to last fall, the Rev. Erick Odir Vidal Fuentes, 37, informed a woman he could treat her injured ankle, court filings state, and asked her to lay down on the church floor while he applied healing oils.

       That victim came forward this summer, according to Takoma Park detectives. They learned of a second victim, according to court documents, who the detectives say went to the church with Fuentes last month believing he intended to say healing prayers for her ill father. Fuentes instead forcibly groped and fondled her, as he did to the first victim, police allege.

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       Police announced Friday that Fuentes, a pastor at Iglesia Pentecostal El fin viene in Takoma Park, was arrested and charged in the two assaults. Fuentes was released from custody on two bonds of $10,000 each after a hearing Friday, according to court records.

       Phone and text messages left at a Maryland phone number that appeared to be connected with Fuentes and with the church were not returned. Facebook and email messages sent to addresses that appeared to be connected with Fuentes and with the church also were not returned. Online court records, which identify him as Erick Odir Vidal-Fuentes, do not list an attorney.

       “After talking to these victims, and interviewing Mr. Fuentes, we believe that there may be other victims out there, and we want them to come forward,” said Takoma Park Detective Charles Earle.

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       He began his investigation on June 21 after a victim came forward with details of what allegedly happened to her nine months earlier. At that time, according to court records, the victim’s mother told her that Fuentes could heal her injured ankle by massaging it with spiritual oils.

       He picked up the woman at her home at 8:30 a.m. and drove her to the church. They walked in and Fuentes “laid a blanket on the church floor and had the victim on her back and began to massage her left thigh,” court records state. The woman said her right ankle was injured, prompting Fuentes to ask her to lay on her stomach where he began fondling her despite the victim repeatedly saying she was “not comfortable” with what was happening, according to the court records. She told detectives that as the abuse continued, she “stayed silent in fear and cried.”

       Afterward, Fuentes told the woman she needed more massages and just as she kept conversations with a therapist confidential, according to charging documents, she also should keep the massages confidential.

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       In the second alleged sexual assault, a woman confided in Fuentes that her father was being treated for a medical condition outside the United States and requested a prayer be said for him.

       “The defendant agreed to this prayer and advised he would like to have a private prayer sessions with the victim,” detectives wrote in court papers. “The victim agreed.”

       Fuentes picked the woman up at her home, took her to the church, and began to rub oil onto her forehead. That led him to him forcibly touching various parts of her body, police said.

       “The victim wanted to ask the defendant why he touched her in her private areas but was too ashamed and scared,” detectives wrote.

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       Fuentes was charged with counts of second-degree rape, fourth-degree sex offense and second-degree assault. In Maryland, the crime of second-degree rape is a felony that covers a range of nonconsensual acts that can involve different body parts.

       Takoma Park Police ask anyone with information about Fuentes to call 240-298-5500 or 240-610-8284.

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