A Sept. 19 trial date was confirmed today for a Temecula dentist accused of having sexual relations with two girls he coached in gymnastics and housed in his home.
Dr. David Martinus Reiakvam, 44, could face more than 50 years in prison
if convicted of 13 counts of lewd acts on a child under 15 and two counts of
Reiakvam appeared with his attorney for a status conference before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Helios Hernandez, who scheduled the trial date after both the prosecution and defense acknowledged they would be prepared to litigate the case by the latter part of September.
Reiakvam, a Riverside resident who runs Reiakvam Family and Cosmetic Dentistry on Rancho California Road, is free on $200,000 bail.
Reiakvam allegedly molested and engaged in sex acts with girls he taught
at two gyms in Riverside. The two alleged victims, who are now in their mid-20s, lived with Reiakvam and his then-wife, Sherry, at their Riverside home during the period of the alleged molestations, according to Deputy District Attorney Debra Postil, the original prosecutor in the case.
Riverside police Detective Laura Ellefson testified at the defendant's preliminary hearing last October that the first girl alleged Reiakvam made initial intimate contact with her during bedside chats, when he would come into her room. That eventually led to regular sexual intercourse when the girl was 15 years old, Ellefson alleged. The other girl was allegedly molested beginning at age 13, beginning when Reiakvam came into her room at night to fondle her, according to testimony. According to Postil, one victim allegedly maintained a sexual relationship with Reiakvam into adulthood.
The defendant lost his job as head of gymnastics at the Empire Acro Gym
because of an unrelated episode with another girl, the prosecutor said.
Court records indicate that Reiakvam has had only one prior brush with
the law, for traffic violations in 2008.
— City News Service contributed to this news report
