Comal County Criminal District Attorney Jennifer Tharp Friday released more details about the Sept. 26 conviction of 41-year-old Justin Villareal, a former Canyon Lake resident and soccer coach who will spend life in prison for the years-long sexual abuse of a young girl.
In a statement, she thanked the victim for showing “tremendous courage as a young adult by coming forward and reporting Villarreal’s true character as a child predator.”
On Sept. 26 a jury found Villareal guilty of continuous sexual abuse of a young child and two counts of sexual assault of a child. The same jury sentenced him on Sept. 30 to life in prison on the continuous sexual assault of a young child and a maximum 20-year sentence on both counts of sexual assault of a child.
Tharp said the jury heard testimony from the victim, who faced Villareal and recounted how he sexually abused her over the course of many years.
The jury also heard testimony from Comal County Detective Rebekah Coons, forensic interviewer Christy Williams with the Guadalupe County Children’s Advocacy Center, and sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) Noella Hill.
The case was prosecuted by assistant district attorneys Lauren Cole and Special Prosecutor Terese Buess with assistance from Victim Assistance Coordinator Angela Sky and district attorney office Investigator Haskell Ivey.
Judge Dib Waldrip of the 433rd District Court presided over the trial.
In November 2020, sources with immediate knowledge of the events leading up to Villareal’s arrest said charges were filed in May 2020 following a “precipitating” incident at Lake Sommerville State Park & Trailway.
Villareal allegedly tried to molest a 17-year-old boy who fled the scene in Villareal’s truck. A second victim, a girl, came forward after that incident and described ongoing sexual abuse.
Villareal was described by several in Canyon Lake as a “loving, involved parent, the last person you would suspect.”
He was arrested in July 2020 in the Houston area by Harris County Pct. 4 constables, who were asked by the Texas Rangers to “assist with a sexual assault of a juvenile warrant arrest on a wanted felon.”
