Canadian man pleads guilty to assaulting teen in Atlanta after he was captured crossing the US border last year.
Royce Eric-Bernard Rivard, 24, pleaded guilty Monday to four counts of child molestation and one count of enticing a child for indecent purposes, FOX5 Atlanta reported.
Rivard was detained at a U.S. port of entry from Canada to Michigan in April 2023 — a month after the teenager came forward to her parents about the abuse, the report said.
“We applaud and appreciate the victim’s courage in speaking out about her abuser,” Douglas County District Attorney Dalia Racine said in a statement. “Too often these incidents go unreported, leaving victims to suffer in silence. We appreciate the efforts of our law enforcement partners and our team to stand up for this victim in court.”
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Royce Eric-Bernard Rivard pleaded guilty to four counts of child molestation and one count of enticing a child for indecent purposes. (Douglas County Sheriffs Office)
The 14-year-old victim told her parents that she met Rivard on social media before he left his home in Canada to meet her in Atlanta in the summer of 2022, according to the report.
Douglas County District Attorney Dalia Racine praised the teenager for coming forward about her abuse. (Google Maps)
Rivard groomed the teenager and used his interest in celebrities to gain her trust. He then rented an Airbnb in Douglas County, where he molested the teenager, the report said.
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The girl said that when she tried to cut ties with Rivard, he threatened to spread false information about her family and told her he knew where her family members lived and worked.
The teenager’s parents immediately called the police after hearing their daughter’s story of abuse. (Douglas County Sheriff’s Office)
The teenager told his parents in February 2023. The parents immediately called the police for help, and that April Rivard was detained.
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After Monday’s confession, Rivard was sentenced to 60 years in prison in prison.