Following jury trial, Providence man sentenced to 25 years in state prison for sexually assaulting female at gunpoint

Published on Tuesday, June 11, 2024

Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced today that a Providence man has been sentenced in Providence County Superior Court to serve 25 years at the Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI) for sexually assaulting a female victim at gunpoint in 2018.

At a hearing on June 4, 2024, Superior Court Justice Stephen P. Nugent sentenced William Gilbert (age 44) to 50 years with 25 years to serve at the ACI, and a 25-year suspended sentence with 50 years of probation. The defendant is required to register as a sex offender for life and attend counseling. Additionally, Judge Nugent issued a No Contact Order between the defendant and the victim.

On April 26, 2023, following the conclusion of a three-day trial, a jury found the defendant guilty on one count of first-degree sexual assault. 

“Sexual violence offenders must be held accountable for the physical and emotional trauma they cause their victims,” said Attorney General Neronha. “It takes great courage to come forward as this victim did, and in doing so, she serves as a great reminder to other victims that justice is indeed possible. Additionally, I want to thank the Providence Police Department for their commitment to delivering justice in this case and many others.”

During the trial, the State proved beyond a reasonable doubt that sometime between August 1, 2018, and September 1, 2018, the defendant sexually assaulted a female victim, who was known to the defendant, in a car in Providence.

On the night of the assault in 2018, the defendant took the victim to India Point Park to buy marijuana. After leaving the park, the defendant drove to a nearby area before pulling over, parking the car, and sexually assaulting the victim at gunpoint. According to the victim, she told the defendant’s then roommate about the sexual assault shortly after it took place, which he corroborated when questioned by police in March 2020. The Rhode Island State Police’s Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested the defendant on April 2, 2020.

“The defendant involved in this incident committed a horrific crime that has caused pain and suffering to the victim and her family, and I am grateful he has now been brought to justice,” said Providence Police Colonel Oscar L. Perez, Jr. “I am proud of the work conducted by the men and women of the Providence Police Department throughout this investigation and thank the prosecutors at the Office of the Attorney General.”

Special Assistant Attorneys General Ariel Pittner and Jillian Dubois of the Office of the Attorney General and Detective Koren Garcia of the Providence Police Department led the investigation and prosecution of the case.

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