Cleburne Man Sentenced For Kidnapping Teen At Gunpoint & Repeated Raping Her
Monday, February 10, 2025, 1:30 P.M. ET. 2 Minute ReadBy Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
LOS ANGELES, CA.- On Friday, 63-year-old Cleburne, Texas, man, and child predator learned that he will die in federal prison after being sentenced to decades for kidnapping a 13-year-old girl at gunpoint in Texas and driving her to California, during which time he continued to sexually assault her throughout her 1,360-mile journey of terror.
On Friday, February 7, 2025, Steven Robert Sablan, 63, of Cleburne, Texas, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha to 420 months in federal prison for his previously entered guilty plea. Judge Aenlle-Rocha also ordered Sablan to pay restitution of $1,158.
Sablan, who has been in federal custody since his arrest in July 2023, appeared in federal court in Los Angeles, California, in January 2024 and pleaded guilty to one count of Kidnapping.
Sablan Admits To Kidnapping And Sexually Assaulting The Child
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph T. McNally and statements made in the District Court, during his plea allocution, Sablan admitted that on July 6, 2023, while in San Antonio, Texas, he abducted a 13-year-old girl at gunpoint, and transporting her in his Nissan Sentra to Long Beach, California. Sablan further admitted that the child told him she was only 13 years old.
Sablan used a firearm to threaten and control the girl. Sablan confined the young girl until she was rescued on July 9, 2023, in Long Beach after a citizen called 911 after seeing the girl holding a “Help Me” sign in the window of Sablan’s vehicle. During the journey from Texas to California, Sablan repeatedly sexually assaulted the girl.
“Sablan violently abducted a child and repeatedly sexually assaulted her while driving her thousands of miles from her home,” prosecutors agreed in a sentencing memorandum. “And while Sablan spent days abusing her for his own pleasure, her parents agonized over their missing child, fearing the worst. The worst was not far from reality.”
“The 35-year sentence imposed ensures this defendant will not have the opportunity to victimize children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph T. McNally. “There is nothing as important as protecting our young people. I commend our federal and local law enforcement partners for their efforts to secure justice here.”
Acting U.S. Attorney McNally commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Long Beach Police Department with assistance from the Cleburne, Texas Police Department and the Fort Worth, Texas Police Department for the investigation, which led to the successful prosecution of Sablan.
