New York fire captain charged with molesting 2 boys in Hollywood
A New York Fire Department captain faces extradition to California after being charged with sexually molesting two young boys this month in Hollywood, authorities said.
Wilbert Riera, 50, was charged with six felony counts of a lewd act on a child under 14, prosecutors said Monday. Federal agents took him into custody Friday at his fire station in New York after Los Angeles County prosecutors obtained a felony complaint for an arrest warrant.
The fire captain is accused of molesting two boys between Sept. 12 and Sept. 14, said Jane Robison, a district attorney’s spokeswoman. If convicted, Riera faces up to a possible life sentence in state prison, Robison said.
The boys are related and have ties to Riera, according to a law-enforcement source familiar with the investigation.
Prosecutors are asking that Riera be held on bail of $2.6 million.
Riera is a 21-year NYFD veteran assigned to emergency medical services on Staten island. After his arrest, the department placed him on a 30-day suspension without pay.
Follow Southern California crime @lacrimes
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