SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) — An international effort led to the arrest of a wanted Mountain View man, and he made his court appearance on Monday.
Franklin Enrique Sarceño Orla, 35, is accused of assaulting at least 19 men, perhaps as many as 60, dating back to 2018.
Back in the United States and in a Santa Clara County Courtroom, Sarceño Orla appeared for the first time in front of a judge Monday facing life in prison.
Mountain View Police Department Detective Lauren Riffel was the lead investigator into accusations that Sarceño Orla drugged and sexually assaulted at least 19 men while working as a barber.
“When you have more than one, that’s crazy enough,” Det. Riffel said. “When you have more than 5, 10, going all the way up to over 60 people – talking to 60 humans that were victimized in a certain population, it’s terrible to have to hear these stories over and over again.”
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Sarceño Orla was freshly back in the United States for this court appearance after fleeing the country to Guatemala.
District Attorney Jeff Rosen says Sarceño Orla skipped court after posting bail when arrested for his first alleged rape, around the time we first covered this case last fall.
Court documents detail a string of crimes dating back to 2018.
Victims reported losing consciousness after sharing drinks with Sarceño Orla, passing out and waking up injured in his home.
RELATED: Mountain View man accused of sexually assaulting at least 60 men appearing in court Monday
DA Rosen has also added enhancements to charges because Sarceño Orla is HIV positive.
“Once this individual fled the country, we made sure that we did everything we could to bring him back,” Rosen said. “We don’t forget.”
Sarceño Orla operated a home barber shop within his apartment in Mountain View.
Some of the men were clients of Sarceño Orla around the time they were assaulted, according to prosecutors – others were men he met in local night clubs.
RELATED: Police searching for Mountain View barber charged for sexually assaulting 2 men
Mountain View barber Franklin Enrique Sarceño Orla fled after arrest for sexual assault of clients, police said.
Mountain View Police Chief Michael Canfield applauds survivors for coming forward to help solve this case.
“In my career of almost 27 years, I have never seen a case like this – with this scope, with his breath of impact on our community,” Chief Canfield said. “With this arrest, our community is safer and our victims know that there is justice that they can seek.”
Sarceño Orla remains in custody this time around after a judge ruled no bail allowed.
He will be back in court for his next appearance in January.
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