Maine man convicted of 1996 rape in Massachusetts

BROCKTON, Mass. — A man who fled to Maine where he lived under an alias for years has been convicted of raping a woman in Massachusetts in 1996.

Ivan Keith, 62, formerly of Bridgewater and Seal Cove, Maine, pleaded guilty Thursday in Brockton Superior Court to charges including rape and kidnapping, The Enterprise of Brockton reported.

Judge Angel Kelly sentenced Keith to up to 20 years in state prison.

“Ivan Keith violently attacked this woman and then fled to Maine where he went on with everyday life, leaving the victim behind to cope and try to move on from this terrorizing incident,” Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz said in a statement. “Years passed, but investigators never gave up on finding justice for this victim.”

Keith, armed with a gun and wearing a mask, raped the then 32-year-old woman as she walked along a dirt path in West Bridgewater following a parent-teacher conference at her child’s school, prosecutors said.

Keith was arrested in Maine in 2019 after he was linked to several rapes in Massachusetts through DNA evidence.

Prosecutors said that when Keith was arrested, he said, “I get it, my time is up.”