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Brian L. Avis, of Egg Harbor Township, pleaded guilty to the offenses in June.
"For more than two decades the victims and their families have waited to know who did this. They may never know why Brian Avis chose them, but today, at a minimum, they have a degree of closure and a measure of justice,” said Chief Assistant Prosecutor John Flammer who represented the State.
Detectives from the City of Brigantine and the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit renewed efforts in 2021 utilizing new technologies and investigative methods to develop a suspect culminating in the arrest of Avis for the sexual assault of a 10-year-old Brigantine girl. Once in custody, Avis’s fingerprints were soon linked to a similar 2003 incident involving a five-year-old girl that occurred in Galloway Township, authorities said.
Both victims and family members were present at sentencing. One victim told the Court and Avis that his actions have caused her lifelong emotional trauma. Avis apologized to both victims.
The cases were investigated by the City of Brigantine and Galloway Township Police Departments, the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit and the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Special Victims Unit.
Anyone with information involving serious crimes is asked to call the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office at 609-909- 7800 or go to the Prosecutor’s Office Web site at https://www.acpo.org/forms/tips-crime-reporting/ and provide information by filling out the form anonymously on the Submit a Tip page. People can also call Crime Stoppers at 609-652-1234 or 1-800-658-8477 (TIPS) or visit the Crime Stoppers Website at http://www.crimestoppersatlantic.com/. Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards for information leading to the arrest and indictment of those who commit crimes in Atlantic County.
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