Epping man takes stand in rape case involving 12-year-old Gonic girl

Reynold Solari leaves the courtroom with his lawyer on Thursday after testifying in his own defense. (Lebanon Voice photo)

DOVER, N.H. - An Epping man charged with sexually assaulting a 12-year-old Gonic girl in 2014 took the stand in his own defense on Thursday, saying the girl told him she was going to make that night "the worse day of my life" when he met her for the first time while riding in a car with her mother earlier on the day the alleged assaults took place.

Reynold Solari, 43, of 349 Calef Hwy., said they were the first words the girl said to him.

Asked by the prosecutor what he thought when she said that, he said, "I laughed it off."
A jury began its second day of deliberations today after Solari became the case's final witness on Thursday and lawyers finished closing arguments later in the afternoon.

Solari stands accused of one counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault, three counts of felonious sexual assault, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, and two counts of simple assault in connection with the Oct. 20, 2014, incident.

Solari testified on Thursday he went to the 12-year-old mother's house after getting into a fight with his wife. He said he and the girl's mother smoked marijuana and were "fooling around" on the couch as other young children as well as the 12-year-old watched movies on the TV.

He said he'd also drank some beers that day and at one point while watching the movie the 12-year-old showed him where the bathroom was so he could relieve himself.

"Did you close the door?" the prosecutor quizzed.

"Of course," he said.

Later he said he and the woman went to her bedroom for the night, but sometime during the night he walked naked down a hall to the bathroom because he had to vomit.

Under questioning from a prosecutor he asserted he never went into any room but the bathroom, but in a recorded interview with an officer soon after the incident was reported, he had said he may have inadvertently entered a room.

On the stand on Thursday Solari testified that, in fact, he did not enter any other room, but may have said something to that effect to appease officers who were "grilling" him during the interview.

The February 2015 indictments' most serious charges include an aggravated felonious sexual assault count that alleges Solari touched her genitals, either directly or through clothing; and three felonious sexual assault counts that allege he touched her breasts and buttocks and made her touch his genitals.

The two endangering the welfare of a child counts against Solari allege he asked the girl to engage in sexual activity. The two misdemeanor simple assault charges allege he had unprivileged physical contact with the girl by touching her on the arm and holding her arms with his hand above her head.

Because of the victim's age, the maximum penalty of the two simple assault charges could draw up to 5 years in prison.

Meanwhile, the aggravated felonious sexual assault charge and three felonious sexual assault charges carry up to a 30-year prison term apiece; and each endangering the welfare of a child charge carry up to seven years.