East Providence Man Gets 12 Year-Sentence For Child Molestation

EAST PROVIDENCE, RI — An East Providence man was sentenced to prison after pleading in Providence Superior Court to sexually assaulting a girl under the age of 14.

Adam Sousa, 47, entered a plea of nolo contendere to one count of first-degree child molestation.

At a court hearing last Wednesday, Sousa was sentenced to 20 years in prison with 12 years to serve. The rest of the sentence will be probation, prosecutors said.

The court also ordered Sousa to register as a sex offender, complete sex offender counseling and be subject to community supervision, which requires lifetime GPS monitoring. The court also issued a no contact order between Sousa and the victim.

"This office prosecutes cases like this one all too often — where a 'trusted' adult sexually exploits a young child," Attorney General Peter Neronha said in a statement. "Such criminal conduct, like that perpetrated by the defendant here, causes irreparable harm to victims and their families. I am grateful for the victim and her family for coming forward and for their willingness to see this case through to the end."

Prosecutors said if the case proceeded to trial, the state was prepared to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that in 2012, Sousa sexually assaulted the girl at her East Providence home.