SKOWHEGAN — A Bingham man who a prosecutor described as a “serial sexual predator that has been terrorizing the state of Maine for 30 years” will serve 23 years in prison for his latest convictions for sexual crimes involving children.

On Monday at the Skowhegan District Court, Judge Andrew Benson sentenced Christopher Cates, 50, to a total of 27 years in prison, with four of those years suspended in lieu of three years of probation. As a condition of probation, Cates is to have no contact with children under the age of 18.

“Mr. Cates has been very busy,” Benson said of Cates’ previous criminal record, which includes convictions since 1996 for offenses ranging from assault to unlawful sexual contact. “He has gone to jail. He has gone to prison. He has done hard time. And he’s still going.”

Cates has been awaiting his sentence in jail after a Somerset County jury found him guilty in January of two counts of unlawful sexual contact, one a Class B and one a Class C; one Class C count of visual sexual aggression against a child; one Class D count of unlawful sexual touching; and one Class E count of indecent conduct.

In Maine, the most serious crimes are Class A crimes; the least serious are Class E crimes.

Benson further found Cates guilty of one Class B count of tampering with a victim and one Class C count of tampering with a witness or informant, the evidence for which prosecutors presented separate from the jury trial.

Benson dismissed three Class D counts of attempted violation of condition of release for “legally inadequate charging language,” according to court records.

The charges stemmed from incidents in July 2023 in which Cates inappropriately touched two young girls, who are sisters, and exposed himself to them during their family camping trip in Moscow. The girls were 9 and 12 at the time, according to court records.

Cates, a Tier III lifetime registrant on the Maine Sex Offender Registry, reserved for the most severe crimes, was first arrested in connection with the case in September 2023 as the result of a Somerset County Sheriff’s Office investigation.

The tampering charges and the dismissed charges were added after Cates violated his bail conditions from the initial arrest. Cates contacted a friend, Christopher White, to try to deliver messages to the victims and their family, which was not allowed under his conditions, according to court records.

White, who Cates’ previous attorney hinted at as another potential suspect during trial, recorded the conversations, as he had previously been working with Detective Jeremy Leal of the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office in his investigation, court filings say.

After a grand jury returned the 10-count indictment in 2024, Cates pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Timothy Snyder, first assistant district attorney for Somerset County, said during Monday’s sentencing that Cates traumatized the two girls, showed no remorse for his actions and seemingly took pleasure in reliving the graphic details of what occurred during the January trial held in Skowhegan.

He said the state was asking for a sentence of 30 years in prison, with all but 25 years suspended, with three years of probation.

Snyder also said Cates has a “nearly unbelievable criminal history,” including 18 sexual offense-related convictions. Past victims included a grandmother and her two granddaughters, a woman needing help carrying her bags, and a prison worker, according to Snyder.

“History has shown that women in the state of Maine are not safe when Mr. Cates is out on the street,” Snyder said. “All of his victims have been unsuspecting strangers. And whenever an opportunity has presented itself, Mr. Cates has pounced.”

The two girls involved in the case and their mother spoke in court, telling Benson about the impact the case has had on their family and their physical and emotional health.

“Two years ago, I lost my life because of Chris Cates,” the older sister said. “But today I will start to live again.”

The younger girl finished her statement saying: “This is going to affect both of our lives for the rest of our lives. And I’m not over what happened.”

The two victims are identified in court records only by their initials, though their names were used during the trial and in court Monday. The Morning Sentinel does not identify victims of sexual offenses without their consent.

Jeffery Toothaker, Cates’ attorney, focused his sentencing argument largely on legal questions about whether sentences for separate counts should be served concurrently or consecutively.

Toothaker, who was appointed to represent Cates within the last month after his previous court-appointed attorneys withdrew, did not argue for a specific sentence Monday.

He did, however, say the case fell in the “lower quadrant” of severity of criminal conduct, at least compared to cases he has handled. As for Cates’ prior extensive criminal record, Toothaker said: “His history speaks for itself.”

“I’m not here to refute what the jury has said,” Toothaker said, looking at the two victims and other family members and friends in the courtroom gallery. “I’m not here to disbelieve you. I’m not here to say you’re bad. I’m here to give him a fair sentence. That’s my job. That’s what I have to do, OK? And you can say anything you want, and that’s good. I’m glad you did.”

Cates’ wife and a friend also spoke in court about Cates’ character, saying he is a kind person who has helped others on many occasions.

Benson ultimately landed closer to prosecutors’ recommendation, although he said after a brief recess in his chambers that both sides changed his mind about aspects of the sentence he imposed.

Benson said he could not find any mitigating factors to be considered as part of Maine’s three-step analysis for determining sentences.

He said he could not overstate the victim impact in the case, calling it “an enormous aggravating factor.”

Benson also considered Cates’ apparent lack of remorse an aggravating factor, citing his testimony during trial. Cates, who was brought to the Skowhegan courtroom from the Somerset County Jail in Madison, chose not to address the court.

“His testimony was completely incredible and completely devoid of remorse,” Benson said. “He very clearly, in the view of the court, was actively dishonest, attempting to perpetrate a fraud on the jury and on the court.”

And Benson found Cates’ prior record the most serious aggravating factor, rattling off a list of prior convictions and sentences, including multiple probation revocations.

“There are, probably, worse criminal records, perhaps in MS-13,” said Benson, in an apparent reference to the notorious international street gang. “But Mr. Cates’ is bad enough.”

Toothaker said the case and sentence is likely to be appealed to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. He withdrew from his appointment following Monday’s proceeding, as the court had already appointed attorney Jeremy Pratt to represent Cates moving forward.