New Bedford Man Sentenced for Raping His Daughter

FALL RIVER (WBSM) — A New Bedford man will spend the next 20 to 30 years in state prison after he was convicted of raping his daughter over the course of six years.

Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced that Robert Albert, 45, was convicted by a jury on June 30 after a five-day trial on two counts of rape of a child aggravated by age difference, two counts of rape of a child, and two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person over the age of 14.

According to the D.A.’s Office, the charges date back to November 16, 2019, when the victim – then 16 years old – told her adult sister that their father had been sexually abusing her. The sister then contacted police, and the victim was removed from the home and Albert was arrested.

“She later told police investigators that the abuse had been going on since she was in the fifth grade,” the D.A.’s Office said, noting both the victim and her sister testified during the trial. “(Albert) would routinely force the girl to perform sex acts in exchange for things she wanted or things she wanted to do.”

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Albert was sentenced to serve 20 to 30 years in state prison, followed by 10 years of supervised probation. He will also have to attend sex offender treatment, have no contact with the victim, not be permitted to live with minor children, have no unsupervised contact with children, have no employment that puts him in contact with children, have no relationships with any parent of a juvenile, and must register as a sex offender.

“This was a terrible case of systematic abuse of a young child over a six-year period. Sadly, the victim’s mother was not in her life during this time, which made it easier for the defendant to abuse her,” District Attorney Quinn said.

“A substantial prison sentence was warranted to punish this egregious conduct, which has severely impacted the victim. I commend the victim for testifying and hope she can move forward with her life now that the criminal case is behind her," he said.