Anthony Robertson Charged with Sex Offender Registration Violation

Anthony Robertson, a 36-year-old man from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, is back behind bars and facing federal charges for failing to register as a sex offender—a requirement stemming from two prior rape convictions. The indictment, handed down in federal court in Springfield, marks the latest chapter in a long pattern of evasion and criminal conduct.

Robertson has been detained since his initial arrest in February 2018 on a criminal complaint. He is required to register under federal law due to convictions for second-degree rape in 2001 and third-degree rape in 2006. In 2014, he was already convicted in a New York state court for failing to comply with registration rules—proof, prosecutors say, of a deliberate and ongoing disregard for the law.

Court documents reveal that in May 2017, Robertson left New York and set up residence in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Just one month later, a New York detective directly notified him that he was wanted for failing to register and advised him to turn himself in. Robertson did neither. He stayed off the grid, avoiding registration in Massachusetts until he was arrested on August 25, 2017—on unrelated charges involving drugs and a firearm.

The current federal charge—failing to register as a sex offender—carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing, if convicted, will be determined by a federal judge applying the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex J. Grant of the Springfield Branch Office. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and John Gibbons, United States Marshal for the District of Massachusetts. Authorities stress that the indictment contains allegations only, and Robertson is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative launched in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation. The program leverages federal, state, and local resources to track down offenders, rescue victims, and dismantle networks of abuse. More information is available at www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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