LI Man Found Guilty Of Rape, Burglary, After Jury Trial: DA

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — A Bellport man was found guilty Friday of rape and burglary after a jury trial, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Eric Freeman, 48, of Bellport, was found guilty after a jury trial of four counts of burglary and one count of rape; burglarizing four homes; raping a teen who was in one of the homes; and then attempting to rape another woman that he harassed at another home, Tierney said.

The evidence at trial established that between June 22 and July 16, 2021, Freeman illegally entered

four homes in Suffolk County, which were occupied by women at the times of the break-ins, the DA said.

Beginning on June 22, 2021, Freeman entered a Bay Shore residence where a 16-year-old female
was inside alone, Tierney said. Freeman sexually assaulted the teen and threatened to kill her when she screamed for help; Freeman then fled the residence, the DA said.

On June 25, 2021, Freeman attempted to enter and burglarize a home in Bellport while harassing
a woman who was inside, under the pretense that he was looking for water, Tierney said.

A week later, on July 1, 2021, Freeman returned to the same home, illegally entered, and attempted to rape a different woman who was living alone in a small apartment attached to the main house, the DA said.

The woman was able to dissuade Freeman by offering him money, the DA said. Prior to leaving her home, Freeman tried to obstruct the woman’s breathing by choking her, Tierney said.

Three days later, on July 4, 2021, Freeman again returned to the woman’s home to taunt and harass her, Tierney said.

Next, on July 12, 2021, Freeman illegally entered another Bellport residence while a mother and her 11-year-old son were inside and stole money and other personal items from the home, Tierney said.

Freeman was arrested by Suffolk County Police officers later that day and was found with several stolen items in his pockets, the DA said.

When he was arraigned on those charges, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office requested that bail be set in the amount of $75,000 cash, $150,000 bond or $750,000 partially secured bond, the DA said.

However, at his arraignment, Suffolk County District Court Judge Edward J. Hennessey released Freeman on his own recognizance and ordered that he wear a GPS ankle monitor, Tierney said.

It was later determined that Freeman, despite having the ankle monitor, did not charge it, so his location could not be tracked, he added.

On July 16, 2021, Freeman illegally entered a Huntington Station residence where a female was home with her 7-year-old daughter, Tierney said.

While inside, Freeman stole money and choked the woman in front of her child, the DA said. Freeman fled the home after the mother and child began screaming and banging on the walls to an adjoining apartment, the DA said.

Freeman was arrested by Suffolk Police shortly thereafter, the DA said.

In November, 2023, while he was being held in jail for those charges, Freeman was indicted for
second-degree conspiracy, a Class B felony, for reportedly attempting to smuggle fentanyl into the correctional facility through his unsuspecting defense attorney, the DA said.

That case is still pending, the DA said.

Prior to these crimes, Freeman was determined to be a Level Three sex offender stemming from a 1990 juvenile offense conviction, Tierney said. He was later convicted of failing to register as a sex offender in June 2021, and at the time that the instant crimes were committed, he was out of custody and ordered by a judge to be released on his own recognizance while pending sentence on that case, the DA said.

On February 9, 2024, Freeman was convicted after a jury trial, heard before Acting Supreme Court
Justice Richard I. Horowitz, of the following charges, Tierney said:

- Two counts of first-degree burglary, a Class B violent felony;
- First-degree rape, a Class B violent felony;
- Two counts of first-degree criminal sexual act, a Class B violent felony;
- First-degree attempted rape, a Class C violent felony;
- Two counts of second-degree burglary, a Class C violent felony;
- Two counts of second-degree attempted burglary, a Class D violent felony;
- Second-degree assault, a Class D violent felony;
- First-degree sexual abuse, a Class D violent felony;
- Two counts of third-degree criminal sexual act, a Class E felony;
- Third-degree rape, a Class E felony;
- Three counts of criminal obstruction of breathing, a misdemeanor;
- Two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor;
- Two counts of second-degree harassment, a misdemeanor; and
- Two counts of third-degree criminal trespass, a misdemeanor.

Freeman is due back in court on March 20 for sentencing and faces up to life in prison if
found by the court to be a persistent felony offender, Tierney said.

He is being represented by John Halverson, and Christopher Gioe, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

"This defendant, a previously convicted Level Three sex offender who was out on bail for failing to register as a sex offender, brazenly targeted women who were alone in their homes," said Tierney. "During the commission of his crimes, he sexually assaulted two women, and then returned to harass one of his victims to terrify her further. This conviction ensures that he will no longer pose a threat to women or any other Suffolk County residents."