The detective who played a pivotal role in securing the conviction of serial child molester David Allen Funston is shocked by his potential release, which he believes poses a significant threat of releasing more child predators into Californian communities.

Upon learning about the decision from the state’s Board of Parole Hearings to grant Funston parole, Richard Aromando, a retired detective from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, promptly revisited his old case documents, as he shared with KCRA.

“Three life sentences. Did you ever expect we’d be having this conversation?” KCRA journalist Lysée Mitri queried Aromando.

“Absolutely not! When I heard about this, I immediately dug out my files and dusted them off!” he exclaimed. “It’s been over three decades.”

He continued, “Why? With three life sentences, what message does this send to the victims?”

Funston’s case has reverberated throughout California, as the serial child molester, whose victims were all under the age of seven, has been granted parole under the state’s elderly parole law. This policy permits inmates aged 50 or older, who have served a minimum of 20 years, to be considered for early release.

A state parole board panel found the 64-year-old no longer posed an unreasonable risk to public safety, clearing the way for his release despite the severity of his crimes.

Gov. Gavin Newsom, who appoints commissioners, asked the parole board to reconsider the decision but they still approved Funston’s reelase.

However, Funston ended up getting transferred to a jail cell after Placer County prosecutors announced new criminal charges stemming from a 1996 molestation case.

At a press event Wednesday focused on financial literacy for women, Newsom said there are “some reforms that we should advance” and he’s “making sure that we know who voted in what direction” on the parole board.

The governor sent Funston’s case to the larger Board of Parole Hearings for another review, which Newsom’s office noted is his only legal remedy.

However, Newsom’s critics have accuse the governor of using is political capital to apply more pressure on commissioners.

“I think there needs to be deeper scrutiny as it relates to violent sexual predators as well,” Newsom said. “So, we’re working with the Legislature and I think there’s real opportunities to advance some of those reforms in this legislative session.”

Aromando was one of the lead detectives in Funston’s case 1995, when a series of incidents involving missing children across the Sacramento area began to raise alarms. 

“After a while, they determined this is not a missing person. This is a kidnapping,” Aromando told KCRA. “We’ve got a pattern going on here.”

The break in the case came when Funston allegedly tried to abduct two young girls — and a neighbor intervened. Funston lured his victims with candy or jewelry before sexually assaulting them. A witness captured his license plate.

“Luckily,” Aromando recalled, “there was a neighbor saying, ‘What are you doing? What are you doing? Who are you?’”

He added, “That’s when we started narrowing down our suspect list to Mr. Funston.”

More than 50 people gathered Wednesday outside the building for state parole hearings in Sacramento as commissioners were set to revisit a November decision granting parole to Gregory Lee Vogelsang, a Roseville man convicted of dozens of child molestation and kidnapping charges.

Many of the Republican legislators and victims’ advocates pinned the blame on Newsom for not taking more forceful steps to intervene.

Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho recently said he had a “list of five other child molesters who are going to be up for parole,” and the law needs urgent modification, according to The Sacramento Bee.

Assemblymember David Tangipa was among those condemning California’s early release policies, which have accelerated parole reviews for violent child predators.

“Let’s sear this into your mind — Charles Manson would be eligible for parole,” Tangipa said, referencing the notorious cult leader responsible for a series of murders. “Jeffrey Epstein would have gotten diversion.”

“That’s how broken this state is.”

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