Bristol County DA: Brazilian national living in Fall River sentenced after pleading guilty to rape and child porn charges

Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn, III has announced that a 55-year-old who was residing in Fall River, MA, but in the country illegally from Brazil, pled guilty in the Fall River Superior Court on Monday to two counts of Rape, a count of Assault to Rape, Indecent Assault and Battery on a person over 14 and Possession of Child Pornography. 

Elias Rodrigues Dos Santos Mendes received a State Prison sentence of 8 to 10 years. The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Canan Yesilcimen and Kalene Kobza. 

The adult female victim newly arrived in the United States at the beginning of March 2024.  The victim came to the US with her four children with the intention of residing in Fall River.  The victim was introduced to Dos Santos Mendes, who was known to her, and was told that he could assist her and her children in finding housing.  When interacting with him, he observed the victim’s 12-year-old daughter and requested the victim to take nude photos and videos of her daughter so he could sell them for money.  Dos Santos Mendes also showed the victim numerous videos and photos on his phone of nude children.  When the victim refused to involve her child, Dos Santos Mendes became angry.  The two were in his vehicle in Fall River at the time.  The defendant then sexually assaulted and raped the victim in his vehicle.  After the victim reported the rape to police, two of Dos Santos Mendes’ phones were seized. One of the devices was brand new as the defendant alleged that he had broken one of his phones the week prior.  Police were able to recover a video on one of his devices that contained child pornography.  The victim did seek medical treatment that yielded a DNA sample.  That DNA sample was a match to Dos Santos Mendes. 

“The defendant took advantage of his position of familiarity and trust with the victim to rape her after attempting to convince her to take nude photos of her children, which she refused. The defendant was also caught with child pornography on his phone. This clearly demonstrates a disturbed and deranged mind. The defendant is not a US citizen and will be subject to deportation when his sentence is finished,” District Attorney Tom Quinn said.