Nicolas Engracio Damian Roberto will serve 30 years in prison for criminal sexual conduct against a minor, the Office of the Attorney General announced following a sentencing hearing Monday afternoon.
Attorney General Douglas Moylan called the crimes against the 12-year-old victim "horrific," explaining that Judge Vernon Perez handed down three 30-year sentences that will run concurrently. This means that instead of 90 consecutive years, Roberto will serve only 30 years, the maximum penalty under the law requested by the AG.
"Roberto showed zero remorse, forced a traumatized child to relive her nightmare on the witness stand, and had the unmitigated gall to blame the crime victim," Moylan said in a release on June 29.
The jury reached a unanimous guilty verdict within one hour of deliberations on March 9, finding Roberto guilty on all three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. The AG said the conviction stems from "a series of continuous abuses in 2023," which resulted in pregnancy.
Following Roberto's conviction in March, Moylan admonished him, calling the crimes "the most egregious violation imaginable." On Monday, he said, "30 years is a heavy price, but my mission remains total permanent incapacitation for monsters like Roberto."