Maplewood Man Convicted; Sexually Assaulted Girl, 7

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — An Essex County jury has convicted a Maplewood man of sexually assaulting a seven-year-old girl, prosecutors announced Friday.

The jury convicted Gery Destra, 21, of Maplewood, of aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault, aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a child, for incidents that took place when the child was between six and seven-years-old, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office stated.

Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 25, 2018. Destra faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years to life in New Jersey State Prison. Under the Jessica Lunsford Act, defendants convicted of raping children younger than 13 are required to serve a minimum of 25 years in prison without parole, prosecutors said.

Destra is currently being held in the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark.

“It took a great deal of bravery and courage for the child to come to court, much less talk about something so traumatizing before the jury,” Assistant Prosecutor Kathleen Lyons-Boswick said.

Members of the Maplewood Police Department and the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Special Victims Unit contributed to the investigation and prosecution of the case.

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