Banning church faculty member charged with sexually assaulting child

A 26-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting a child at a Banning church was charged today with lewd acts on a child under 14 years old and other offenses.

Nicholas Garrett Corl of Banning was arrested earlier this week following an investigation by the Banning Police Department.   

Along with the lewd acts count, Corl is charged with a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a position of trust to commit a criminal offense.   

The defendant is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Smith Correctional Facility and was slated to make his initial court appearance Friday afternoon at the Banning Justice Center.

According to a police statement, an unidentified member of the Mountain Avenue Baptist Church at 1325 Mountain Ave. contacted officers late Tuesday afternoon to report "criminal acts against a child that occurred on church property."  

The specific offenses weren't disclosed, nor was the victim's identity. Corl, a member of the congregation, was identified as the alleged perpetrator, police said.

The ensuing investigation culminated in the defendant's uneventful arrest at the Vista Serena Condominium Complex shortly before 6 p.m. Tuesday.   

Corl has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.

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