Long Island church leader charged with rape
A church leader and Uniondale resident was charged with allegedly having sexual relations with a minor.
Jose Wilfredo Vazquez Cardoza, 49, of Maple Avenue, allegedly had what Nassau police called “multiple sexual encounters” between Aug. 21, 2011 and April 7, 2016 with a girl from when she was 12 to 16, while serving as a church leader and security for Iglesia Cristiana Unida in Hempstead.
Cardoza has been serving as an active member and elder of the Iglesia Misionera El Redentor on Merrick Road in Amityville, since March 2023. Police arrested him on July 10.
Cardoza is charged with second-degree rape, criminal sexual act, sexual abuse, disseminating indecent material to minors and endangering the welfare of a child.
Arraigned on July 11, Cardoza is due back in court on July 15. As of press time, he does not have legal representation.
Police are asking anyone who may have been victimized by Cardoza to contact the Special Victims Squad Detectives at (516) 573-4022 or Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1 (800) 244-8477. All calls are confidential.
