A Habersham County judge sentenced a Cornelia man to two life sentences for raping and sexually assaulting two young female relatives.
Superior Court Judge Chan Caudell handed down the sentence against Pedro Pena during a hearing on October 25 in Clarkesville. In August, a jury convicted the 39-year-old Pena on all counts of a nine-count indictment following a three-day trial.
At trial, prosecutors presented evidence that Pena sexually assaulted the girls while they were visiting him from Texas in the summer of 2015. At the time, one of the girls was 13 and the other was 14. One of the girls disclosed the abuse to a counselor in 2018.
Jurors convicted Pena on two counts of incest, two counts of sexual battery against a child under 16, two counts of cruelty to children in the first degree, two counts of aggravated child molestation, and one count of rape.
Judge Caudell sentenced Pena to life in prison on one count of aggravated child molestation and the rape charge. On the other aggravated child molestation charge, he sentenced Pena to 25 years to serve, followed by life on probation. Caudell handed down concurrent prison sentences on the six other counts.
Under Georgia law, Pena will not be eligible for parole for at least 30 years.
Before handing down his sentence, Judge Caudell considered a presentence investigation report from the Georgia Department of Community Supervision, written
sentencing memoranda from the State and defense, and victim impact statements from the victims and their mother.
This article has been updated to reflect that Pena’s correct age is 39
