Former Providence man sentenced to serve 18 years in state prison on child molestation charges

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced yesterday that a man has been sentenced to serve 18 years in state prison after sexually assaulting three female victims between 2012 and 2018, who were under the age of 14.

43-year-old Nelson Santos pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree child molestation and one count of second-degree child molestation.

Santos must also register as a sex offender, complete sex offender counseling, and is subject to community supervision. The court also issued a No Contact Order between the defendant and the victims.

According to officials, the molestations were discovered when one of the victim’s mothers called Providence Police following a domestic disturbance in 2018, but the defendant could not be located and was later discovered to have fled to Guatemala.

While authorities prepared to extradite him, the defendant was apprehended near Marfa, Texas when he attempted to illegally re-enter the United States.

The defendant served approximately 18 months in federal custody before he was transferred to the custody of the State of Rhode Island and prosecuted for the child molestation charges.