By O’Ryan Johnson and Joe Dwinell
The Boston Herald
BOSTON — An elderly child molester with several convictions was bludgeoned to death in the prison that had been his home for a decade, officials said.
Richard Silva, 64, was serving prison time for a 2003 Suffolk Superior Court sexual abuse conviction, according to Department of Correction spokeswoman Diane Wiffin. The offenses occurred in May 1989, but they were only the latest in a string of sexual abuse convictions dating back to the 1970s, according to the state’s Sex Offender Registry Board.
Silva was convicted of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 in 1971, 1973 and 1974. In 1991, he was convicted of two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and one count of indecent assault and battery on a child over 14.
Silva was serving nine to 10 years at MCI-Norfolk for his latest conviction. A prison source told the Herald that Silva was beaten so severely his skull had split open. Silva was set to be released in March. The Norfolk District Attorney’s Office said Silva’s death was ruled a homicide.
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