A 39-year-old Brockton man is facing multiple felony charges after East Bridgewater police say he sexually assaulted a woman with severe mobility issues while delivering her medication at her home. Qaisar Ali was arrested Wednesday following a motor vehicle stop and was held on $10,000 bail ahead of his arraignment Thursday in Brockton District Court.
According to WCVB, Ali worked for a pharmaceutical delivery service and entered the woman's home without permission on August 2 while delivering medication. Investigators said he repeatedly touched the woman inappropriately; the woman uses a wheelchair because of severe mobility issues, per the outlet's report.
East Bridgewater police responded to the home at 11:33 a.m. Wednesday to investigate a reported sexual assault, the station's report states. During the investigation, officers located Ali's vehicle and identified him as the suspect. In an August 6 statement, the East Bridgewater Police Department said Detective Cecilia Cacciatore identified Ali and his white Toyota Camry during the preliminary investigation and obtained an arrest warrant before officers executed the traffic stop on August 5.
Charges Carry Decades of Potential Prison Time
Ali is charged with assault with intent to commit rape, three counts of assault and battery on an elderly or disabled person, two counts of indecent assault and battery on an elderly or disabled person, indecent exposure, and breaking and entering in the daytime, per the same account. Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265, Section 24, assault with intent to commit rape is a felony punishable by up to 20 years in state prison or up to 2.5 years in a house of correction for a first offense.
Indecent assault and battery on an elderly or disabled person carries a statutory penalty of up to 10 years in state prison or up to 2.5 years in a house of correction under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265, Section 13H. Breaking and entering in the daytime with intent to commit a felony is punishable by up to 10 years in state prison or up to 2.5 years in a house of correction under Chapter 266, Section 18 of the state's general laws.
Brockton District Court holds criminal jurisdiction over several South Shore municipalities in Plymouth County, including Brockton, East Bridgewater, West Bridgewater, Whitman, and Bridgewater, according to information from Mass.gov. East Bridgewater is a South Shore town with roughly 14,400 residents, situated about 25 miles south of Boston and bordering Brockton, where Ali resides.
A Detective With a History of High-Profile Cases
Lead investigator Detective Cecilia Cacciatore has handled prominent local investigations before. She previously posed online as a juvenile in a 2021 undercover sting that led to child exploitation and human trafficking charges against a Wellesley man, according to WHDH.
Disabled Adults Face Outsized Risk and Barriers to Reporting
The case underscores a broader pattern documented nationally. Data published by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics in November 2021 found that the rate of violent victimization against persons with disabilities was 46.2 per 1,000 between 2017 and 2019, nearly four times the rate of 12.3 per 1,000 for people without disabilities.
The same data show only 19% of rapes or sexual assaults against people with disabilities were reported to police during that period, compared to 36% for victims without disabilities. Guidance from the U.S. Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime notes that crime victims with disabilities face severe barriers to reporting abuse, including fears of jeopardizing personal care arrangements or worries that authorities will doubt their claims.
It remains unclear which pharmaceutical delivery company employed Ali, what background screening protocols were used before sending drivers into vulnerable patients' homes, or whether other delivery recipients have reported similar interactions. East Bridgewater police have made two other high-profile arrests in recent months, including an earlier child pornography arrest and a separate sexual assault case involving Mohamed Salieu Jalloh.
