Dale City man headed to prison after he raped, drugged victims

Balmore Ortiz Guardado, 36, of Dale City, will spend at least 35 years in prison after Prince William County Circuit Court Judge Kimberly A. Irving sentenced him to a life sentence. Guardado was charged with drugging and raping women and girls.

From Prince William County Commonwealth Attorney Amy Ashworth’s office:

…the Defendant, a drug dealer, actively recruited and provided illegal substances to include Percocet pills laced with fentanyl, methamphetamines, cocaine, Xanax and alcohol to female victims aged 15-16, facilitating the sexual abuse and rape of the victims, often while they were incapacitated from the drug use or with the threat of a firearm. These acts occurred in late 2021 through 2022. The Defendant was arrested on January 26, 2023.

On January 17, 2024, the Defendant entered a guilty plea to fourteen charges as follows: three (3) counts of Rape, three counts (3) of Object Sexual Penetration, seven (7) counts of Distribution of a Schedule I or II to a Minor, and one (1) count of Possession of Child Pornography. There was no agreement as to the sentence to be imposed and a sentencing hearing to determine the appropriate punishment was held on June 27, 2024. The Defendant was ordered to register with the Virginia Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry.

Upon hearing the evidence and argument of both sides at the sentencing hearing, the Honorable the Defendant to six life sentences plus 215 years of incarceration with 179 years suspended (35 years of mandatory time). The Judge’s reasons for departing from the Sentencing Guidelines which recommended a sentence within the range of 35 to 86 years included “the violence of the crimes, the number of victims and the effect [of the crimes] on the victims, the use of a firearm, and the recommendation of the Commonwealth.”