() A California judge has been charged with sexually assaulting two women inside a courthouse and then attempting to obstruct investigations into the allegations. 

A grand jury indicted California Superior Court Judge Adolfo Corona, 66, on five counts, the Justice Department announced last week.

The indictment alleges that Corona, while serving as a California Superior Court judge, led a 33-year-old court employee into a courthouse stairwell and sexually assaulted her. 

The FBI and court administrators have said Corona lied about some of the circumstances of the incident during separate interviews. 

Prosecutors said Corona assaulted another individual who was found unconscious in his chambers in December 2023. The indictment alleges the second accuser, a 43-year-old court employee, was alone in Corona’s chambers for approximately two hours. 

Corona is accused of obstructing the sexual assault investigation of the second employee. 

The indictment says Corona told the FBI he left the employee alone in his chambers while he drove to pick up a motorcycle. But prosecutors said that wasn’t true, and that Corona went so far as to try to persuade a motorcycle dealership employee to change company records to make it appear as if he had picked up his motorcycle at a time that would give him an alibi. 

Corona has been charged with federal offenses for sexual assault, making false statements to cover up the assault, and obstructing an investigation. 

He faces a potential maximum penalty of 40 years in prison on the sexual assault charge and 20 years on each of the obstruction charges.