A Riverside jury convicted Robert Downing Scott Jr., 34, of 17 felonies involving the sexual abuse of a 12-year-old girl. Scott, who was on probation for a prior child sex crime, is scheduled to be sentenced Friday and faces life in prison with the possibility of parole. The convictions include seven counts of lewd acts on a child, five of aggravated sexual assault of a minor, two of contacting a minor to commit a felony, two of possessing child pornography and one of using a minor to produce child pornography.
The jury reached its verdict Sept. 1, 2026, after deliberations began Aug. 31, according to MyNewsLA.com. The trial was held in Riverside County Superior Court before Judge Emma Smith. Patch reported that sentencing is scheduled for Friday at the Riverside Hall of Justice. MyNewsLA reported that Smith is expected to apply state sentencing requirements at the hearing. She had initially set sentencing for mid-October; after the verdict, she revoked Scott’s $3 million bail and ordered him held without bail.
How the Abuse Began on a Teen Swiping App
The trial brief says S.J. first encountered Scott on Spotafriend in November 2021. Scott told her he was 30, according to MyNewsLA.com. The article’s earlier account also cited background compiled by GetKidsInternetSafe, but the material cited does not independently establish the app’s age-verification practices or the claims attributed to a child-safety study.
According to the trial brief, Scott asked S.J. about being friends with benefits and requested compromising photographs. Before Christmas 2021, he arranged an Uber ride for her to his RV in Riverside while her mother was at work, MyNewsLA.com reported.
A Months-Long Pattern of Abuse
The trial brief says Scott sexually abused S.J. during the first overnight encounter and photographed her nude. It also describes Scott’s use of the terms “daddy” and “daughter” and his use of pacifiers while taking photographs. S.J. told authorities she believed she would be safe if she did what he wanted.
The brief describes further encounters at Scott’s mobile home and in motel rooms between December 2021 and June 2022. When he was short of money, he asked S.J. to take funds from her mother’s accounts, according to MyNewsLA.com. It also recounts an incident in which Scott continued after S.J. asked him to stop and tried to kick him away.
Arrest Came After Mother Found Explicit Messages
The investigation began when S.J.’s mother found explicit messages between her daughter and Scott on the girl’s phone and contacted law enforcement. Riverside Police Department detectives in the Sexual Assault – Child Abuse Unit investigated. Scott was arrested without incident near downtown Riverside on June 22, 2022, according to MyNewsLA.com. Detectives confirmed Scott was on probation for a prior statutory-rape conviction by the time of his 2022 arrest.
At the time of that arrest, Scott was on probation for a prior statutory-rape conviction, meaning he was under court supervision for a sex crime against a child by then. He was held at the Byrd Detention Center.
What national online-exploitation figures show
The available figures do not establish how California’s Internet Crimes Against Children task force workload has changed over time. The federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention says ICAC task forces nationwide conducted nearly 347,000 investigations in 2025, leading to more than 17,000 arrests. Those are national investigation and arrest counts, not California-specific figures or a count of unique victims.
What online-enticement reports count
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children says its CyberTipline received 1.4 million reports concerning online enticement in 2025. That figure counts reports, not confirmed crimes or unique victims.
What the Law Requires at Sentencing
MyNewsLA reported that Scott is slated for a life sentence with the possibility of parole under state law. Judge Smith is expected to apply state sentencing requirements when she sentences Scott on Friday at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
