Lawrence Man Pleads Guilty To Rape, Manslaughter Of Amesbury Teen

LAWRENCE, MA — A 49-year-old Lawrence man pleaded guilty Friday to charges in connection with the 2019 death of a 13-year-old, prosecutors said.

Carlos Rivera pleaded guilty to 19 counts: involuntary manslaughter, five counts of aggravated rape of a child, rape, two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, indecent assault and battery on a person over 14, six counts of human trafficking, two counts of distribution of class B drug to a minor and distribution of a class A substance, according to a news release from the Essex District Attorney’s Office.

He was sentenced to 20 to 22 years in state prison and 10 years of probation.

Rivera brought 13-year-old Chloe Ricard to the Lawrence General Hospital Emergency Department on May 20, 2019, according to the release. She was pronounced dead soon after arriving at the hospital.

"Had the case gone to trial, Essex Assistant District Attorney Jessica Strasnick would have introduced evidence that would have proved that on May 20, 2019, Carlos Rivera drove Chloe Ricard, who was unresponsive and without a pulse to Lawrence General Hospital," prosecutors said. "Investigators learned that a friend had received a Snapchat video of Chloe, showing her unresponsive and unconscious at 7:00 am that morning. She remained in that condition at the defendant’s home until he brought her to the hospital 9 hours later."

Investigators found that Rivera provided alcohol, drugs, food, clothing and gifts to multiple girls in exchange for sexual acts, according to the release. He pleaded guilty to conduct from late 2013 to May 2019 with victims including three adult women and seven girls under 18.

“Nothing we do can erase the trauma inflicted by this defendant or bring Chloe back to her family,” Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett said in a statement. “This defendant engaged in abhorrent behavior and preyed on vulnerable girls and young women solely for his own satisfaction. I hope his pleading guilty today helps the victims understand that what happened to them is not their fault and that they may begin the long process of healing.”

Following his prison term, Rivera's probation requires him "to participate in substance use, mental health and sex offender evaluations and undergo any treatment deemed necessary, stay away from and have no contact with any of the victims, have no unsupervised contact with children under 18, submit to GPS monitoring for at least 2 years, and comply with the Sex Offender Registry Board," according to the release.