A woman was charged with sexually abusing children by forcing them to commit lewd acts on each other in front of her, officials said Thursday.
Brandi Alma Valadez, 40, faces six felony charges, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office: two counts of lewd acts on a child under 14, two counts of forcible lewd acts on a child under 14 and two counts of child abuse, with a sentencing enhancement for multiple victims.
Valadez was arrested Wednesday in Twentynine Palms but has lived in various cities, authorities said.
The charges involve two boys under the ages 10 and 13 and one girl under the age of seven, all of whom knew the suspect, according to a statement from the DA.
Valadez is accused of forcing one of the boys and the girl to engage in sexual acts with each other, and of sexually assaulting the young girl herself. She was also allegedly aware that the second boy had committed sexual acts on the girl.
The crimes took place in August 2014, the DA said. Police were made aware of the accusations after two of the children reported the assaults to family members.
If convicted, Valadez faces a maximum sentence of life in state prison. She is being held on $1 million bail and will next appear in court Nov. 4.
