A former Massachusetts police officer charged with child rape was sentenced Thursday to 10-15 years in prison followed by two years of probation.
Shawn Souza, a former police officer in Dartmouth, was convicted Wednesday on two counts of aggravated rape of a child, one count of rape of a child by force and one count of indecent assault and battery of a person 14 or older, according to the Bristol County District Attorney's Office. The guilty verdict came following a three-day trial.
STAY IN THE KNOW
 |
Watch NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
 |
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters. |
Prosecutors had argued for a 20-25 year sentence, while defense asked for a 10-year prison term.
Souza was first accused of the crimes in 2019. The assaults happened before he became a police officer in 2008.
Get top local stories in Boston delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC Boston's News Headlines newsletter.
During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that Souza raped a family member on multiple occasions when she was between the ages of 6 and 8 between 2011 and 2013. He was also convicted of molesting a 15-year-old girl in 2013. The second victim was a family friend and was at Souza's home with her family to watch a movie when the incident occurred.
Both victims testified and provided the court with victim impact statements.
This was the second trial held in this case. A mistrial was declared in the first trial in 2022 when the jury could not agree on a verdict.
“The defendant took advantage of his position of trust and access to sexually abuse a six year old child over a two year period," Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn said in a statement. "It is a particularly aggravating factor that he was raping the victim while he was a police officer.... I commend the victims and their families for persevering through this difficult ordeal, including a second trial. I admire the victim for telling the court today that she refused to be defined by what the defendant did to her."
Dartmouth Police Chief Brian Levesque said in a statement that Souza's actions "were a betrayal of the trust that the public holds in us.We take an oath to protect our citizens, not harm them — especially the most vulnerable."
