(NEWS CENTER) -- A man from Sydney who was convicted of the sexual assault of a 4-year-old girl received a 50 year prison sentence.
Twenty-five-year-old Eric Bard pleaded guilty last August to several charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and gross sexual assault. The assaults on the girl happened over several months in late 2011 and 2012 when Bard was babysitting the child after he befriended her mother, said police. Bard also recorded the assaults on his cell phone.
Investigators caught on to him after someone reported seeing an ad on Craigslist in which Bard offered to babysit and bathe children.
His attorney suggested a sentence of seven years, while the state asked for 50 years.
"The state through consecutive sentences is seeking a determinant 50 year sentence to be followed by supervised release for lifetime. That's the only sentence that will give due consideration to the crimes that have occurred. The character of the individual who committed those crimes and the need to protect the community from the creation of any more victims," said Paul Rucha, the Assistant Attorney General
Bard has already spent more than three years in jail while his case made its way through the judicial system.
