80-year-old man sentenced for tasing and raping underage neighbor at gunpoint

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (TCD) -- An 80-year-old man will ostensibly serve the rest of his life in prison after he was sentenced to 39 years for raping his juvenile neighbor.

Bernalillo County court records show David Sarver was handed the sentence July 6.

According to the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office, Sarver was convicted May 17 of two counts of criminal sexual penetration of a child under 13 and first-degree kidnapping. The jury reportedly deliberated for eight hours before convicting him following a six-day trial.

The statement says Sarver "had been grooming his young neighbor for several years" before his arrest in March 2021. Sarver reportedly became "aggressive" in his "sexual advances" towards the minor, and even "tased the victim and held him at gunpoint while raping him."

According to the Albuquerque Journal, the assaults started when the boy was 10 years old. Sarver was reportedly known around the area for being a dog rescuer and fostered dogs whose owners were in the military. He was even nominated for the Albuquerque Journal's Angels Among Us award.

After he was convicted, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office tweeted, "The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office is proud of our hardworking detectives and the men and women that fight tirelessly to bring justice to victims in our county. It is a relief to know that David Sarver will serve the remainder of his life in prison."

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