EDINBURG, Texas (AP) _ A jury in Edinburg convicted a man of sexual abuse in a case where a girl’s 2008 letter to Santa alleged she and her sister were being molested.
Sentencing is Dec. 28 for 57-year-old Andres Enrique Cantu of Pharr, who faces a pair of 25-year prison terms. Prosecutors say the victims were his stepdaughters.
Cantu, who remains in custody, was convicted Wednesday on two counts of continuous sexual abuse of a child. He was acquitted of two other counts.
Prosecutors say the girls were 9 and 10 when the younger sister wrote the letter as part of a school assignment.
Defense attorney Mauro Barreiro says the letter was misinterpreted. The lawyer has said the mother, who previously had been deported, may have been seeking a special immigration visa for crime victims.