Sgt. Richard Rivera is free on $5,000 unsecured bail ahead of an October preliminary hearing.
A sergeant and superior at SCI Phoenix in Skippack Township is on leave, without pay, but with benefits, after being arrested and charged by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections this month with three misdemeanor indecent assault charges related to an incident involving a co-worker in March 2024.
The Department of Corrections confirmed Richard Rivera, 35, of the 100 block of Garth Road, Oreland, was hired as a Corrections Officer Trainee on Sept. 11, 2017 at SCI Graterford. Authorities said he was moved to SCI Phoenix on Aug. 1, 2018, and has seven years of state service.
Rivera remains free on $5,000 unsecured bail, according to court records. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 16 at 10:15 a.m. before Magisterial District Judge Adam T. Katzman.
According to an affidavit filed Sept. 5 by a criminal investigator with the state Department of Corrections Bureau of Investigations and Intelligence, on March 11, 2024, the victim reported that Rivera, her supervisor, leaned over to look at the computers, and when he reached across his body with his right hand and grabbed her right breast.
After the victim confronted Rivera, he said he was “just playing around,” per the affidavit. On the same day, authorities allege, Rivera responded, “I have fresh protein for your coffee,” when the victim asked hi if there was coffee creamer.
On March 12, while working her post, the victim asked Rivera to relieve her so she could use the bathroom. Per the affidavit, when she was leaving, Rivera grabbed her buttocks. The victim, police said, told Rivera not to do that.
When she returned, the victim told police Rivera was sitting in her chair and said, “Come sit on daddy’s lap,” according to the complaint. Again, per the complaint, the victim confronted Rivera about his actions.
Later in the day, Rivera allegedly rubbed his penis on the victim’s arm while he looked out of the control windows. When she confronted Rivera, per the affidavit, he replied, “It’s not like I was trying to rub my penis on you.”
During video surveillance footage reviews, police said, at 2:55 p.m. March 11, 2024, Rivera is seen stopped at the top of the control stairs as the victim entered the frame. The victim moved around him in the video, and as she passed him, Rivera’s hand, police allege, opened and he reached backwards toward her buttocks.
On March 12, at 6:57 p.m., an officer left the control area, leaving the victim alone with Rivera. Police said the video shows Rivera walking toward the victim, as she was moving a corkboard in the window. He then walked behind her, police allege, as she walked the opposite direction, where he stopped and reached back again with an open hand toward her buttocks.
Rivera, police said, continued to reach back and turn his head backwards toward the victim. There were no further incidents captured on video, as there are no cameras in the control center.
