Man Found Guilty of Sexually Assaulting Minor Cousin on Way to School

A jury has returned a guilty verdict against a man who sexually assaulted his 13-year-old cousin after pretending to take her to school in October 2022.

The unanimous decision on both charges of serious indecency and indecent assault came Friday after jurors spent roughly 90 minutes deliberating the case that began on January 26.

Evidence presented during the trial showed that on October 26, 2022, the defendant, then in his early twenties, offered the victim a ride to school as was his usual practice. Instead of heading directly to the school, he drove to multiple locations with another male cousin in the vehicle. After stopping at the market where the other passenger exited, he diverted to an isolated dirt road.

There, prosecutors said, he coerced and physically forced the girl to perform oral sex and inappropriately touched her.

In his defense, the man gave an unsworn statement acknowledging he had given the victim a ride that morning. He maintained he had dropped her off at school and then went about running errands with other family members before going home.

The jury rejected his account. Sentencing is scheduled for March 6.