Yorkville man given 20 years for sexually assaulting stepdaughter for nearly 10 years

YORKVILLE, Ill. — A Kendall County man will spend two decades in prison for sexually assaulting his stepdaughter over a nearly 10-year period.

Rafael Sanchez, a 53-year-old Yorkville resident, pleaded guilty earlier this month to one count of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child in Kendall County. He later entered the same plea agreement in Kane County, Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis announced Wednesday.

According to Weis, the charges were handed down after a victim disclosed to police in 2022 that she had been sexually assaulted by Sanchez, who was her stepfather, when she was a child.

The victim told police that the assaults, which began in the late 1990s and continued into 2007, happened in Aurora and unincorporated Kendall County and she was under the age of 13 during most of the time the assaults occurred.

Prosecutors said after the victim reported the assaults, a joint investigation by the Aurora Police Department and the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office began.

Charges against Sanchez were filed in both Kendall and Kane Counties in 2023 and he was taken into custody shortly after.

Following his arrest, Sanchez remained in custody in Kendall County until his sentencing.

Pursuant to the plea agreement, Sanchez was sentenced to 10 years in prison in Kendall County and 10 years in prison in Kane County. The sentences will be severed consecutively for a total of 20 years in prison.

Additionally, Sanchez must serve at least 85% of his 20-year total sentence before being eligible for Mandatory Supervised Release. 

Sanchez’s plea and sentence were approved by Judge Jody Gleason. 

Authorities did not provide a booking photo for Sanchez.