Behavioral specialist, 62, gets two life sentences after he raped and impregnated two patients with the mental ages of children at center where he worked

  • Bernard Betts-King, 62, was given two life terms in prison for raping and impregnating women with mental disabilities in Springfield, Virginia 
  • He pleaded guilty in July to raping women 'through use of their mental capacity'
  • The rapes occurred while he was working as a behavioral technician at an organization that provides therapeutic and work opportunities to disabled adults
  • A victim learned she was pregnant October 2017 and gave birth February 2018
  • She was unable to identify her attacker so the case went cold for months
  • Last November another woman gave birth and named Betts-King as the rapist  
  • DNA tests confirmed there is a 99 percent chance Betts-King was the father 
  • Their families are now raising the children, whose DNA matched the defendant  
  • Prosecutors say both victims have the intellectual ability of children and neither had been taught about sex

Bernard Betts-King, 62, was given two life terms in prison Friday, for raping and impregnating women with mental disabilities in Springfield, Virginia in 2017 and 2018

Bernard Betts-King, 62, was given two life terms in prison Friday, for raping and impregnating women with mental disabilities in Springfield, Virginia in 2017 and 2018

A former employee of a Virginia nonprofit for disabled individuals has been given two life terms in prison for raping and impregnating women with mental disabilities.

Fairfax County Judge Bruce D. White described the crimes of 62-year-old Bernard Betts-King as 'so vile' as he handed down the maximum sentences Friday, the Washington Post reported.

Betts-King pleaded guilty in July to raping the women - who attended day programs at the MLVE Community Center - 'through use of their mental capacity'. 

It's reported the 33-year-old victim has the mental capacity of a 12-year-old and the 22-year-old victim has the mental capacity of a five-year-old but when confronted with the evidence, Betts-King allegedly told investigators that the women 'came on to him'.

Doctors learned of the rapes by Betts-King - who worked as a behavioral technician - after discovering during routine medical exams that each woman was five months pregnant.

Prosecutors said neither woman comprehended what it meant to be pregnant and had trouble communicating with doctors.

Fairfax County Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney George Freeman IV said in court that one victim's pregnancy 'came as a surprise to her mother' because the woman 'did not indicate in any way to her mother that this was the case'.

A judge called the crimes 'so vile' on Friday and the unidentified brother of one victim said he agreed and was 'relieved' at the sentencing

 A judge called the crimes 'so vile' on Friday and the unidentified brother of one victim said he agreed and was 'relieved' at the sentencing

Betts-King was a behavioral specialist at MLVE Community Center, an organization that provides therapeutic and work opportunities to disabled adults in Springfield, Virginia. Staff at the facility (pictured) said they were shocked to learn that Betts-King had raped two clients

Freeman also said she was forced to undergo a Caesarean section last February because she didn't understand instructions to push. 

The woman of Korean descent gave birth to a biracial baby but the case went cold because she couldn't communicate what had happened.

It emerged Betts-King had raped another woman after she went to the doctor to have a mole removed and upon discovery of her pregnancy she revealed Betts-King had touched in a way she didn't like. DNA matched the defendant.

'You have been found guilty of rape of the most vulnerable people in our society,' Judge White told the rapist. 'Until today, I found no sign of any remorse. You were in a position of trust where you should have been protecting them instead of acting as a predator.'

The unidentified brother of one victim said he agreed with the judge and was 'relieved' at the sentencing.

He said his 76-year-old grandmother was taking care of the baby girl and in time he might become the legal guardian. The sibling also mention financial struggles.  

DNA tests confirmed there is a 99 percent chance Betts-King was the father of one woman's child
It linked him to a previous rape that had gone unsolved

DNA tests confirmed there is a 99 percent chance Betts-King was the father of one woman's child. It linked him to a previous rape that had gone unsolved

Prosecutors say both victims have the intellectual ability of children and neither had been taught about sex but Betts-King allegedly told investigators that the women 'came on to him'

 Prosecutors say both victims have the intellectual ability of children and neither had been taught about sex but Betts-King allegedly told investigators that the women 'came on to him'

'My sister, because of her mental state, doesn’t have maternal instincts,' he said about the woman with Down Syndrome and on the autism spectrum. 'We are trying to get her to understand how to care for the child.'

The family of the other victim is also raising her child but didn't attend court Friday.  

Police say he may have assaulted other victims while working at MLVE and at another organization, Community Living Alternatives, in Fairfax. 

MLVE previously said the organization is cooperating with police, and that it no longer employs Betts-King. 

MLVE Executive Director Susan Keenan said staff at the organization were shocked to learn of the rapes.

'We are focused entirely on making sure that our individuals are safe and healthy right now,' Keenan said.   

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