SANTA ANA – An 81-year-old former pastor and missionary was sentenced Thursday to 18 years in prison for sexually assaulting three girls.

Douglas Dale Whinery pleaded guilty to seven felony counts of lewd acts on a child under the age of 14.

Prosecutors allege that Whinery was in a position of trust when he met the 8-, 9- and 10-year-old girls. At the time, he was involved with the Olive Crest Church in Santa Ana, the Foothill Family Church in Foothill Ranch and the Grace Church in Yorba Linda.

Whinery was accused of molesting the 9-year-old girl sometime between January 2005 and June 2006. Prosecutors said he was caring for the girl and her sister while they were in California to go to a theme park.

According to prosecutors, Whinery met the 10-year-old and 8-year-old girls at a park in Tustin. He was accused of grooming the pair, giving them money, taking them to school and church and letting them spend the night at his home.

Whinery sexually assaulted the two girls on multiple occasions between Nov. 7, 2011, and March 28, 2016, prosecutors said. One of the girls told a family member in late March. Tustin police investigated the allegations, taking Whinery into custody on March 30.

Prosecutors said there were other alleged victims who were not included in the charges, but were willing to testify to sexual assaults by Whinery dating back as far as 40 years.

A longtime pilot, Whinery founded the Tustin-based Wings of Faith Ministries, a nonprofit that flies supplies to missionaries working on remote Native American Indian reservations.

Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com