Bedford Man Arrested On Statutory Rape, Assault Charges After Incidents In Bow, Londonderry In 2025

BOW, NH — A man from Bedford is facing two sets of charges, accused of statutory rape and sexual assault of a girl in at least two different locations, according to police and court documents.

James Anthony Bautista, 21, of Meetinghouse Road in Bedford, was arrested on Jan. 22 on three felony counts of felonious sexual assault-penetration-victim 13-15, as well as unregistered vehicle and operating with an expired license violations by Bow police. On Jan. 26, he was arrested on two felonious sexual assault-penetration-victim 13-15 and two misdemeanor sexual assault charges by Londonderry police.

The case originated in Bow in early December 2025 after a mother met with police about a dating relationship her daughter, 14, was having with a man she initially believed to be a boy, 16, according to an affidavit. Police later learned the man was actually 21, according to a report. The mother accused Bautista of transporting her daughter to places and suspected they were engaged in sexual activity, an affidavit said.

The girl requested to speak to an investigator alone, which they did, and the investigator confirmed the mother’s suspicions, saying the girl communicated with Bautista via her cellphone on Snapchat, TikTok, and phone numbers, the report stated. An investigator requested permission from the mother to access the girl’s cellphone and located messages purported to be between the girl and Bautista, the report said. After reviewing some of the messages, the mother signed a consent-to-search form, and the Bow police seized the phone.

The girl was also interviewed by the Merrimack County Child Advocacy Center on Dec. 18. The girl said she met Bautista in September while with a friend stargazing at Joppa Hill Field in Bedford, and they struck up a conversation, the report stated.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by Bow and Londonderry police departments and district courts and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains how to request the removal of a name from New Hampshire Patch police reports.

The girl and Bautista reportedly communicated in a group chat and later met, spending time with in Hooksett and Londonderry one evening and a second evening at the Rockingham Mall in Salem and Londonderry, the report stated. The girl also accused Bautista of becoming “a lot touchier” on the second visit, which was in an area near the airport. On the second visit, she accused him of “pressuring her to have sex,” and while “very hesitant,” she “never said ‘yea’,” the report stated.

A third time, nothing sexual happened, she said, but the fourth time, after taking a trip to Salem again, a friend had seen her with Bautista and became upset because they knew he was a man. That led to the mother initially being tipped off about the relationship, according to the affidavit. The mother punished the girl by taking her phone away, but later, in November, gave it back to her, and she continued to communicate with Bautista. She estimated they met for sex three or four times in Bow.

Bow police requested and obtained email history from a school Chromebook and also used a license plate reader in town to confirm the presence of Bautista’s vehicle, a 2025 GMC Sierra with a New Hampshire registration, 21 times in November and December, a report stated.

On Dec. 24, 2025, police began communicating with Bautista via email while an officer posed as the girl and told him she missed her period, an affidavit stated.

“Bautista responds and offers to bring (the girl) a pregnancy test,” the report stated.

On Jan. 7, police interviewed a friend known to the girl who took screenshots on Life360 of the girl and Bautista on Dec. 1, the report stated. The girl accused them of being at a pond nearby for more than 30 minutes and reported seeing the victim with hickeys, a police report stated.

Department of Homeland Security was requested to extract data from the cellphone on Jan. 8 and revealed several sexually charged notes and requests by Bautista of the girl. The girl also reportedly asked ChatGPT about pregnancy information, including, “If you don’t eat and your (sic) pregnant can you lose the baby?”

A warrant was issued for Bautista’s arrest on Jan. 16 and Judge Ryan Guptill determined there was probable cause on Jan. 23. According to a case summary report, police determined the felonious sexual assaults in Bow took place on Nov. 13, Dec. 1, and Dec. 9, 2025, at the Turee Pond Boat Launch on Falcon Way in Bow. The driving violations occurred on Albin Road in Bow on Jan. 22, the case summary said.

According to Londonderry police, their charges occurred on Nov. 11 and included allegations of statutory rape and fondling, according to a case summary report.

Bautista has probable cause hearings booked in Concord and Derry district courts on Feb. 19.

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