Southern California shaman charged with multiple rapes and crimes against children

An Inland Empire shaman known as “Blind Coyote” will appear in court next week on sex crimes charges, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office said.

Ricardo Flores, a 59-year-old Rialto resident, was arrested at the border last week and is scheduled to go on trial on August 23 on several charges, including rape, penetration with a foreign object, sexual penetration with bodily injury on a minor over the age of 14 and lewd acts on a child under the age of 14.

Flores was arrested on Aug. 7 after several victims reported to the Moreno Valley Police Department that they had been sexually assaulted, according to a news release from the Riverside County Sheriff's Office. They said they had been abused by the same person, who lives in the 26000 block of Sandi Lane.

Flores is the religious leader of a shamanic community that lives in various locations in Riverside County, officials said. He was arrested at the U.S.-Mexico border and booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center.