A man known familiar to the Bristol community for his molestation of young boys has been released from prison and is back living in town. On Wednesday, the Bristol Police Department took steps to notify the public that Richard Perry, 63, has registered as a Level III sex offender — classified as high-risk to commit further offenses — and is living at 47 River St., Bristol, R.I.

Mr. Perry was a longtime sports coach and volunteer, as well as a public school department employee, who pled no contest to three counts of second-degree child molestation in January of 2015. At the time, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison, with 10 to serve. On Wednesday, Bristol Police began notifying the public that he has been released and is back in town. 

At the time of his conviction, the Rhode Attorney General's Office released a statement saying:

"During the State's presentation of the evidence, Bristol Police Sergeant Steven St. Pierre testified regarding the background and investigation of the case. Perry pled after that testimony and prior to the testimony of the victim involved in one of the three cases in which he was charged.

"The State was prepared to prove that between 1999 and 2003 Perry molested a boy he met through Bristol youth athletic programs from time the boy was nine years old to age 13. In the second case, the State was prepared to prove that while Perry was employed as a custodian at the Kickemuit Middle School in Warren he molested a 13-year-old boy in 2001. In the third case, the State was prepared to prove that Perry also molested a 12-year-old boy in 2001.

"The defendant used his job and involvement with youth athletics to prey on young boys. His actions were depraved and despicable, taking advantage of impressionable young men who looked up to him as someone who could be trusted," said Attorney General Peter Kilmartin. "I commend the efforts of the Bristol Police and the Rhode Island State Police in working through the evidence, much of it from long ago, in tracking down and convincing the victims to come forward and putting together a strong case that our Office was able to successfully prosecute."

Following protocols established by the Rhode Island Sexual Offender and Community Notification Act, Bristol Police notified neighbors, the school district, media, and all registered childcare and youth athletic programs in the town of Bristol of Mr. Perry's new residency. Several months after Mr. Perry's no-contest plea and prison sentence, his older brother, Jesse Perry, was sentenced to life in prison for similar offenses with three different boys. Jesse Perry was also a longtime youth sports coach in town.