Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced that Saul Lopez (age 63), of Central Falls, pleaded guilty on July 9, 2019 to four counts of first-degree child molestation and was sentenced to 24 years at the ACI. Superior Court Justice Jeffrey A. Lanphear sentenced Lopez to a 50-year full sentence, with 24 years to serve and the balance suspended with probation.
Additionally, Lopes must register as a sex offender and undergo counseling while at the ACI and upon his release. Lopez is also subject to a No Contact Order with his victims.
Lopez was arrested on April 18, 2019 in Moreno Valley, California after eluding arrest by law enforcement since November 2018. Lopez subsequently waived extradition to Rhode Island to face prosecution by the Office of the Attorney General.
Had the case proceeded to trial, the State was prepared to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that between October 1999 and April 2016, Lopez molested two family members.
Detective Jeffrey Araujo of the Central Falls Police Department conducted the investigation into the case, with assistance from the U.S. Marshal's Service. Special Assistant Attorney General Ania Zielinski prosecuted the case on behalf of the Office of the Attorney General.
###