What was supposed to be a spiritual reset at a Marina botanica instead turned into a criminal case, according to police, after a woman reported she was sexually assaulted during a paid cleansing session. The arrest of the shop’s owner on felony charges has now sparked a separate city probe into what exactly the business was licensed to do, and how far those services were supposed to go.
Authorities identified the suspect as 40-year-old Diego Andres Alape and say officers arrested him at the storefront on Monday. According to CBS News, the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office has charged Alape with sexual battery by fraud and penetration with a foreign object, and he was booked into the Monterey County Jail on $100,000 bail.
Police say the investigation began after a woman came forward on April 10 to report a previous assault during an appointment at Botanica Y Esperanza in the 3000 block of Del Monte Boulevard. As reported by KSBW, Marina’s code-enforcement unit is assisting officers and looking into potential use-permit violations, including accusations that the business was offering massages without the required licenses.
When a cleansing turns criminal
Botanicas often serve as trusted neighborhood spots for spiritual counseling, herbal remedies and ritual cleansings that are particularly significant in many Latino communities. That deep cultural role can make regulation touchy and reporting difficult. Prosecutors in other parts of California have confronted similar cases in which self-described spiritual cleansers allegedly used ritual elements to confuse or disarm clients, then carried out sexual assaults. That pattern was detailed in earlier coverage by the Los Angeles Times, which reported on prosecutions linked to purported cleansing rituals.
What the charges mean
The accusations against Alape rest on two specific California statutes: sexual battery by fraud and sexual penetration by a foreign object. Penal Code §243.4 governs sexual battery, including situations in which a person is touched under false pretenses, while Penal Code §289 defines sexual penetration by a foreign object as a felony offense. Both laws are used to prosecute nonconsensual sexual acts. The full statutory language is available at Cal. Penal Code §289 and Cal. Penal Code §243.4.
The Marina Police Department has forwarded the case to the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office and says the investigation is still underway. According to CBS News, anyone with information is urged to call the Marina Police Department at 831-384-7575 or leave an anonymous tip at 831-884-1286. City officials, in comments relayed through police, said they recognize and respect the cultural importance of these types of services while stressing that every business has to follow state and local rules on licensing and health and safety.
