Man is charged with sexual assault of child of ex-fiancée

SAN JOSE >> A man has been charged with sexually assaulting the child of a woman who was his exfiancée, based on an allegation that surfaced during an investigation into the woman's killing this past weekend, authorities say.

Police have stopped short of calling Ray Anthony Garcia a formal suspect in the death of 33-year-old Joanna Pinedo Gandara. Officers were called to her home on Thelma Way in the late afternoon of Dec. 3 after a family member reported finding Pinedo Gandara's body; the relative had gone there to check on the victim after she did not respond to text messages.

Though the discovery was reported Dec. 3, the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-coroner's Office lists Pinedo Gandara as having died on Dec. 2. The official cause of death is listed as “sharp force injuries” to her neck.

In the homicide investigation, an accusation was made against Garcia, the victim's ex-fiancée, alleging that he sexually assaulted Pinedo Gandara's child on Halloween. Police arrested Garcia based on that allegation and he was booked Dec. 4 into the Elmwood men's jail, where he remains in custody without bail.

According to a San Jose Police Department report, a family member of Pineda Gandara told investigators that Garcia shared a young son with the victim and that they lived together as recently as a month before the death. That family member also said the couple had an unhealthy relationship marked by “psychological abuse.” The police report includes an account from the assault victim, who recounted the sexual contact by Garcia.

Garcia, a 28-year-old San Jose resident, formally was charged on Dec. 6 with forcing lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 and was arraigned on Dec. 7, court records show. Though authorities confirm that he is being investigated in connection with Pinedo Gandara's death, he has not been charged with any homicide-related crimes.

The death marked San Jose's 31st homicide of the year; there were 35 homicides recorded at the same point last year, which was the final total for 2022. That year, no homicides were recorded after Nov. 18.

Anyone with information about the Thelma Way killing can contact the San Jose Police Department homicide unit at 408-277-5283 or email Detective Sergeant J.J. Vallejo at 3810@sanjoseca. gov or Detective Mike Harrington at 4365@sanjoseca.gov. Tips also can be left with Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408-947-7867 or at svcrimestoppers.org.