PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced today that an Indiana man has been found guilty in Washington County Superior Court of child molestation and sexual assault.
On December 11, 2025, following the conclusion of a 9-day trial before Superior Court Justice Sarah Taft-Carter, a jury found Frank Thies (age 69) guilty of one count of first-degree child molestation and one count of first-degree sexual assault.
The defendant is currently being held without bail pending a sentencing hearing.
“Through advancements in genetic genealogy, we are finally able to close the book on this difficult case,” said Attorney General Neronha. “These two victims demonstrated immense courage during the original investigation, as well as in the decades since. Now, this defendant will finally be held accountable for his crimes. I want to thank the prosecutors in my Office and the Rhode Island State Police for bringing long overdue justice to these victims.”
During the trial, the State proved beyond a reasonable doubt that on April 12, 1987, the defendant sexually assaulted two juvenile female victims at knifepoint in the woods of Exeter. The two victims, both under the age of fourteen, were not known to him.
“I appreciate the efforts of our Troopers and prosecutors in the Attorney General’s Office on their successful investigation and prosecution of this defendant,” said Rhode Island State Police Colonel Darnell S. Weaver. “I hope that this conviction provides some closure for the victims.”
Assistant Attorney General Timothy Healy and Special Assistant Attorney General Jessica Villella of the Attorney General’s Office and Detective Sergeant Kyle Draper and Major Michael Quinn (ret.) of the Rhode Island State Police led the investigation and prosecution of the case. The Rhode Island State Police were assisted in the investigation by members of the Indiana State Police.