Former Biggs Mayor Robert Bassett Sentenced for Grooming, Abusing Exchange Student

Robert Brian Bassett, 58, received a 4-year-4-month prison term for sexually abusing a 17-year-old foreign exchange student in his care. The judge imposed the maximum sentence citing grooming and abuse of trust.

Ex-Mayor of Small California Town Receives Maximum Sentence for Child Sex Abuse

Robert Brian Bassett, 58, the former mayor of Biggs, California, was sentenced Wednesday to four years and four months in state prison after pleading no contest to three felony child-sex-abuse charges, NY Post Metro reports.

The victim, a 17-year-old foreign exchange student, lived in Bassett's home from April through November 2023 — thousands of miles from her own family. Bassett was designated as her host.

Prosecutors say he spent months grooming the teenager before sexually abusing her on multiple occasions while she was still 17. At the time of the abuse, Bassett was serving as mayor of Biggs, a small Northern California town of approximately 2,000 residents.

The judge imposed the maximum sentence, citing three aggravating factors: the girl's vulnerability, Bassett's deliberate grooming, and his exploitation of her trust. Prosecutors described the case as a fundamental betrayal of the role he was supposed to fill.

The victim addressed the court directly, stating she continues to suffer from the abuse — and from the realization that someone she trusted had betrayed her.

The case came to light after Bassett's arrest on July 9, when police executed a search warrant at his Biggs home. Investigators subsequently contacted the victim in her home country, where she disclosed the full extent of the abuse.

Bassett had served on the Biggs City Council and held the position of mayor from 2022 through December 2024. He stepped down as mayor but initially retained his council seat, before resigning in early 2025 amid a separate extortion investigation.

A subsequent criminal investigation into his conduct during his mayoral term led to a plea agreement. Under that deal, two additional felony charges were dropped in exchange for his no-contest plea on the three remaining counts.

Upon release from prison, Bassett will be required to register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Source: NY Post Metro