New Bedford Man Convicted of Aggravated Rape and Kidnapping of Drunk Woman

FALL RIVER (WBSM) — A New Bedford man was recently convicted on charges of aggravated rape and kidnapping for a 2023 incident in which he took an inebriated woman into a garage and raped her.

Abner Rivera, 37, was convicted on February 7 by a jury in Fall River Superior Court.

According to the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office, the incident occurred on January 15, 2023, when the 22-year-old female victim spent a night drinking with friends and was dropped off at the corner of Acushnet Avenue and Deane Street in New Bedford “in a highly inebriated state.”

Get our free mobile app

“The victim has no memory of being dropped at the corner or what happened thereafter,” the D.A.’s Office said.

Video surveillance showed Rivera carrying the woman away from the corner over his shoulder while she was unconscious. The video then showed him carrying her into a nearby garage where he gathers cardboard. He then placed her on the ground and raped her.

The victim then fell onto her face when attempting to stand, and Rivera dragged her back into the garage. He then went to a nearby fire station and reported finding a drunken woman.

“The victim was transported to the hospital for treatment with no memory of what had happened in the garage,” the D.A.’s Office said. “A condom was located in a dumpster in the garage where the victim was found. Testing on the condom revealed the DNA of both the defendant and victim.”

Rivera is scheduled for sentencing on March 14.

“I am pleased that the jury held the defendant accountable for taking advantage of the victim who was incapacitated. I hope this provides the victim some sense of closure,” District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said.