Arrest records detail child sex assault allegation against former Florence City Councilman

FLORENCE, Colo. (KRDO) -- A former Florence City Councilmember is charged with sexually assaulting a child. Court documents obtained by 13 Investigates detail the investigation into 68-year-old Anthony Esquibel. 

Esquibel was one of five council members who resigned en masse in March. Some of the former council members told 13 Investigates they quit their jobs because they did everything they could but failed to get city leaders to follow their directions to get corruption allegations investigated by an outside agency. In 2021, the former city manager was fired by the resigned city council for sexual harassment of his employees. The fired manager pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges related to his behavior with women he supervised.

A minor came forward with allegations against former councilman Anthony Esquibel to Florence Police Department on June 7, 2022. In the arrest affidavit, investigators wrote that the victim went to the police department the morning after the alleged assault. The victim told the detective she was outside of Esquibel’s home, possibly doing some kind of yard work when the alleged assault happened. 

According to information provided by a detective in the arrest affidavit, Esquibel told the victim she had a “cute belly button” after her shirt rode up when she was putting her hair in a ponytail. After making that comment, court documents Esquibel began rubbing the victim's stomach and told her he was “making sure she was not overheating.” The victim told the detectives that he then moved his hands further up her shirt, over her chest. 

When the victim was leaving his property, investigators said Esquibel grabbed her bottom and patted it with his hand. 

The Florence Police Department asked the Fremont County Sheriff's Office to take over the case due to the "conflict of interest" because the allegations were against a former Florence council member.

After the initial report, Fremont County Sheriff's Office investigators spoke with the victim who agreed to confront Esquibel about what happened the day before. Multiple detectives were assigned to park near the exchange and gave her a cell phone that was capable of recording their conversation. Due to technical difficulties, however, the cell phone failed to capture the audio clearly. 

Following the confrontation, investigators spoke with the victim. According to the affidavit, the victim made the following statements:

• She asked Esquibel if she could talk to him out front because he and his wife were in the backyard
• Esquibel began to explain to her what work he needed done the following day
• She asked Esquibel if they can talk about what happened yesterday
• Esquibel replied “Yeah sure, I’m sorry, I won’t do it again”
• Esquibel then left it at that and continued about what work he needed done the following day
• She told Esquibel that it made her really uncomfortable and Anthony replied that he was sorry and wouldn’t do it again
• Esquibel also stated that he meant to go see her that morning to talk about it or something but he was busy

According to the affidavit, the victim also told investigators she didn’t realize that she needed to be specific about what happened when she confronted Esquibel. 

After the confrontation, the affidavit states detectives interviewed Esquibel and his wife at the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office Investigations Office on June 21. 

According to the detectives, Esquibel said he didn’t know why he was being interviewed and said he had “no idea” who the victim was and had never met them. 

Further, into the interview, he said the victim had come over to their house to earn some money and was moving bricks and rocks. 

He and his wife told investigators they were together the whole time. His wife accused the victim of lying about the accusations, saying they came across “as someone who needed attention.”

At one point, the affidavit states investigators began interviewing Esquibel alone from his wife. While speaking to investigators alone, he claimed the victim had only been around himself and his wife one time. 

Esquibel said he saw the victim “fanning her shirt” when she was hot and brought her water. Still, he maintained that he thought she was lying about the accusations. He told investigators he never thought about sexually assaulting or touching the victim inappropriately, saying he went through many hours of sexual harassment training as a Florence City Council member. 

When asked if investigators would find his DNA on her clothing, he said there was no way. He also said he’d be willing to do a polygraph about the accusations. 

Investigators asked about the confrontation and asked what happened. Esquibel told detectives she went to his house and said something about wanting more money. That’s when detectives revealed she was wearing a wire and they could hear him apologizing during the interaction. In response to that, he said:

“Basically, what happened was, we were over there working… I touched her when she bend over and helped her but I did not do anything else.”

He said the victim had then confronted him, screaming and yelling and accusing him of sexually assaulting her. Esquibel told investigators he told her to stay away and that he “will not have anything more to do with it.”

According to the affidavit, investigators explained they knew Esquibel had apologized to the victim and that he knew he was wrong for touching her inappropriately and wouldn’t do it again. After this, the affidavit states he nodded yes but continued denying any purposeful touching. He also said he did not touch her back or reach under her shirt, but that he might’ve touched her stomach area when she was fanning her shirt. 

He also claimed when the victim was putting some bricks down, she bent over and “acted like she hurt herself.” He said he just tried to help her up. 

When asked if there was any way his DNA would be on her bra, he said “Not that I know of.” However, he went on to say “Unless like I said when I went down to pick her up that was it.” He then said his DNA might be on her bra from when he helped her up. 

In the affidavit, detectives asked Esquibel if it was “fair to say the reason he apologized” to the victim was that he "felt he was in the wrong.” Esquibel responded by saying, “If that is what she wants to call it.”

He reiterated that if he did touch her, it was only by accident. According to the affidavit, he also demonstrated how she was bent over and fanning her shirt and how he helped her up. The court documents said it should be noted that with each demonstration, Esquibel’s hands kept going up each time he showed where he placed his hands on her body to help her up. Eventually, detectives allege his hands were going all the way up to his chest area.

According to the affidavit, a detective explained that an adult male would “reasonably know or should know” if he touched her bra. He agreed but still denied that he sexually assaulted the girl.

Investigators also asked Esquibel if he made any comments about her being pretty, and he said “Not that I know of, no.” He then went on to say it was possible he commented on her appearance, according to the affidavit.

A detective explained the definition of unlawful sexual contact to Esquibel and asked if he thinks this situation fits. He replied by saying “Probably.” When pressed further and presented with a lengthier definition, Esquibel said the situation fits the definition of unlawful sexual contact “accidentally.”

When asked again if he grabbed her, the affidavit states that Esquibel said he didn’t “intentionally” grab her.

Before being swabbed for DNA, the court documents say Esquibel told investigators, “It’s sad that when you try to help somebody, they turn around and throw it in your face.” 

He maintained that nothing that happened was “intentional or inappropriate.”

13 Investigates reached out to the public defender's office that is representing Esquibel. They said they had no comment at this time.