Tulare man guilty of rape; faces 175 years

A Tulare County jury Thursday found Joseph Velasquez, 28, of Tulare, guilty of forcible rape and other violent sex crimes.

Velasquez was convicted of one count of forcible rape, two counts of sexual penetration with a foreign object, three counts of oral copulation by force, fear, or duress, one count of sodomy by force, one count of assault with intent to commit a forcible sex act during the commission of a first-degree burglary, and one count of first-degree burglary with a person present. Each count is a felony.

The jury also found true the special allegation that Velasquez committed a burglary with the intent to commit a forcible sex offense. The court also found Velasquez possessed a prior prison term for stalking.

Sentencing is set for June 9 when he faces up to 175 years to life in state prison.