A Concord man was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison for raping a Napa teenager at her family’s home in 2022.
Ariel Vazferreira, 33, was sentenced in Napa County Superior Court, where a jury found him guilty in September of forcible rape of a minor, oral copulation of a minor, sodomy of a minor and sexual battery by restraint.
He was sentenced by Judge Francisca Tisher during a hearing attended by the victim.
“I have lost the want and will to be happy for so long,” the victim told the court. “I do not care if you go to prison for 11 years, 12 years, no amount will bring back the smile and laughter I have lost. No prison sentence will ever feel enough for what you have taken from me. You took the most important moment of my life and turned it into the most humiliating event. I do not care if you are sorry, if your family feels sorry because at the end of the day, you knew what you were doing at your grown age.”
She was 16 years old when the rape occurred at her family’s home on Aug. 28, 2022, according to the Napa County District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors said Vazferreira verified how long her parents would be gone before assaulting her. He left shortly after.
According to court records, Vazferreira was charged in June 2023. His jury trial began at the end of September and a verdict was reached Oct. 1.
“This sentence reflects the seriousness of the defendant’s actions and the incredible courage the victim showed in coming forward,” Napa County Deputy District Attorney Roberts said in a statement. “The defendant abused a position of trust to prey on a vulnerable person, and the sentence holds him fully accountable while reaffirming our commitment to protecting young people in our community.”
You can reach Staff Writer Colin Atagi at colin.atagi@pressdemocrat.com.