Riverside County pastor arrested on child sexual assault charges

Authorities have arrested a 78-year-old pastor in Riverside for allegedly sexually assaulting a child under the age of 10, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

David Helbling, who identifies himself as a pastor with Assemblies of God USA on his social media account, was arrested Feb. 14 after Riverside County deputies executed a search warrant on a building in the 23000 block of Hemlock Avenue in Moreno Valley.

During the search, the department said, deputies found “evidence related to the crime,� which the minor had reported Jan. 30. The alleged sexual assault had occurred on the same block where deputies later executed the search warrant, authorities said.

During their investigation, deputies identified Helbling as the suspect in the case, though they did not specify what led them to that conclusion.

Helbling was booked into the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility, where he remains in custody on $2-million bail.

Helbling was charged with kidnapping and kidnapping to commit rape, as well as a slew of other sex abuse charges. Some of the charges carry allegations that the child was under 14. One of the charges is for conduct against a child under the age of 10.