California man charged with assault on girls 5, 7

Editor’s note: Some content regarding the alleged sexual assault on two young girls may be disturbing to most readers.

WASILLA — A 55-year-old California man is in jail charged with sexually assaulting two Mat-Su Valley girls, ages 5 and 7, at an area hotel.

Mario Paradiso of California was arrested Saturday morning by authorities at the Anchorage International Airport while waiting to board a plane back to California, according to an affidavit from Alaska State Troopers Investigator Christopher Long in support of charges against Paradiso. The girls were with Paradiso at his hotel room Friday and reported to the mother of the 7-year-old they were exposed to seeing Paradiso’s private parts.

The mother reported that Paradiso initially called her and said he took medications that made him pass out and resulted in the girls seeing him exposed, the affidavit says. However, the girl told her mother a different story, that Paradiso allegedly pulled down her panties and touched her.

The affidavit also says Paradiso made the girls “pinky promise” not to tell anyone or else he would go to jail.

In his affidavit, Long says he served an electronic surveillance warrant and had the mother contact Paradiso, and that the man admitted his actions.

“During the conversation, Paradiso stated he was sorry, [the girls] were not lying and that he was sick and needs help. Paradiso also stated he must have penetrated [one of the girls] with his finger,” the affidavit says. “Paradiso indicated he got excited when [the girls] jumped on his stomach and slid up and down on him.”

In interviews with Trooper Long, the girls revealed other details of Paradiso’s alleged improper contact with them, Long says in the affidavit. One girl said Paradiso touched her posterior with his penis. The other girl also said he urinated on her while making a statement similar to “take it, baby.” A medical exam of the children shows possible trauma injury to their private parts, the affidavit says.

By 11 p.m. Friday, staff at the hotel informed investigators Paradiso was still a guest there, but there was no answer at his room and a request for maid service was on the door. As part of the investigation, a locate advisement was put out with state law enforcement. It was about 6:50 a.m. Saturday at Anchorage International Airport when officials there detained Paradiso while he was waiting for a flight leaving the state.

Paradiso is being held at the Mat-Su Pre-Trial Facility on $250,000 bail.

Editor's note: The man charged with these alleged crimes, Mario Paradiso, is close to the family of the alleged victims and was in town visiting for the holidays. His exact relationship to the victims or the family was deliberately left vague so as not to identify the victims.