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Ulster County resident Charles Burgher, of Highland, was found guilty on Thursday, Oct. 5 in Kingston.
The conviction stems from events taking place between August 2022 and Nov. 2022, when Burgher was arrested after a five-and-a-half-hour standoff with law enforcement at the 9W Motel in the Town of Ulster, said the Ulster County District Attorney's Office.
Burgher finally surrendered to authorities when the Kingston-Ulster Emergency Services Unit was about to force entry into the room.
Burgher and the child victim were neighbors in Highland for the better part of 2022 and the victim regularly watched his four children, the DA's Office said,
On Monday, Nov. 7, 2022, the child-victim's mother filed a missing person’s report with the Town of Lloyd Police Department when she did not return home from school.
An investigation led law enforcement officials to the 9W Motel in Lake Katrine, where the child was recovered safely.
She was brought to the hospital where a sexual assault nurse examiner collected forensic evidence that confirmed sex had taken place, court documents show.
“This case highlights the commendable cooperation by multiple law enforcement agencies in Ulster County. The Town of Ulster Police Department captured the defendant in the nick of time as he had planned on running off with the child the following morning to New York City to begin a new life with her," said Senior Assistant District Attorney Nicholas LaStella.
Officials said the child victim displayed a lot of courage in taking the witness stand and testifying in detail about the repeated acts of sexual assault committed against her by Burgher.
Burgher is remanded to the Ulster County Jail until his sentencing in December.
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