After-School Counselor, Manchester Resident, Convicted Of Sex Assault

MANCHESTER, CT — A jury has found a Manchester man guilty of sexually assaulting a youth he met while running an after-school program in Hartford.

Hartford State's Attorney Sharmese L. Walcott said Tuesday the verdict was reached late last week. Robert Nichols, 43, of Manchester, was convicted of two counts of fourth-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor.

The jury trial was presided over by Judge Michael J. Gustafson.

Following the verdict, Nichols was taken into custody by judicial marshals after his bond was set at $500,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 29 before Judge Gustafson.

According to case records, the child was 11 at the time of the assaults. He testified that he met Nichols at an after-school program run by at the M.D. Fox Elementary School in Hartford during the 2009-2010 school year.

Nichols offered to let the boy stay at his house for the summer "to help his mother with disciplining the child," and both physically and sexually assaulted the boy during his stay, according to case records.