Man sentenced to 29 years in prison for aggravated sexual assault of a child in Morris County
PARSIPPANY-TROY HILLS, NJ (Morris County) – A former of Parsippany-Troy Hills man was sentenced in relation to an aggravated sexual assault that occurred in October 2017 in Parsippany-Troy Hills, according to Morris County First Assistant Prosecutor Maggie Calderwood.
Amit Bhatt, 43, was sentenced on June 23 before the Honorable Ralph Amirata, J.S.C. sentenced Bhatt to 29 years in New Jersey State Prison on a firs- degree aggravated sexual assault with 25 years of parole ineligibility, Calderwood said.
Judge Amirata also imposed six years in New Jersey State Prison on a second-degree sexual assault, subject to the No Early Release Act (NERA). A third-degree endangering the welfare of a child count merged into the sexual assault count. The sentences were ordered to run concurrently to each other, Calderwood said.
Upon release, Bhatt is subject to Megan’s Law notification and Parole Supervision for Life. He is also ordered to have no contact with the victim. Pursuant to the Jessica Lunsford Act, the defendant was required to receive a sentence between 25 years and life imprisonment, with a mandatory 25 years of parole ineligibility, on the first-degree aggravated sexual assault charge, Calderwood said.
A jury returned a guilty verdict on the three charges on Jan. 27 following a three-day trial, Calderwood said.
The charges arose from an incident that occurred on Oct. 28, 2017 in Parsippany-Troy Hills, where Bhatt performed sex acts on and touched the inner thigh of an 8-year-old child, Calderwood said.
Members of the Parsippany-Troy Hills Police Department and the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Sex Crimes / Child Endangerment Unit conducted an investigation into the incident after being notified of the victim’s disclosure by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office on Jan. 11, 2022, Calderwood said.
