Matthew Bulmer gets 15 years to life for luring boy, sexually abusing another for 6 years, DA says

An Islip Terrace man who admitted being attracted to children was sentenced Monday to 15 years to life in prison for molesting a boy in a store restroom and for sexually abusing another boy for six years, the Suffolk district attorney's office said.

During the sentencing, Matthew Bulmer, 23, briefly apologized to the two boys, and while the victims did not appear in court, one of the boys' parents spoke about the fears that haunt their son, now 6, prosecutor John Cortes said.

Bulmer was arrested Oct. 19, 2013, the day he lured a 5-year-old boy into a restroom at the Islandia Walmart, where he worked, and molested him.

Authorities later got word of another victim, a boy who was 5 when Bulmer began sexually abusing him and was still abusing him six years later when the Walmart incident happened.

Bulmer had pleaded guilty in November to all the charges, including two counts of predatory sexual assault against a child, two counts of use of a child in a sexual performance, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and one count of luring a child and possession of child pornography. The bulk of the charges stemmed from his six-year abuse of the older boy.

"He acknowledged there was a problem and said sorry for what he did," Cortes said.

Bulmer's attorney, Gerard Donnelly of Hauppauge, could not immediately be reached Monday afternoon.

Bulmer was arrested after store surveillance footage showed him luring the boy with winks and nods to the restroom when the boy was "briefly" left alone by his mother, who was nearby, Cortes said. The boy left the restroom and told his mother, authorities said.

At sentencing, the boy's parents told Suffolk County Court Judge Barbara Kahn that their son fears being alone and being touched -- even by his own parents, Cortes said.

"If he's at school and somebody touches him -- it could be a harmless touch -- he gets jumpy," Cortes said.

The store footage showed Bulmer had "no impulse control whatsoever," Cortes said: "It's just so shocking that in a blink of an eye, a child in a crowded place could be lured away and become a victim of abuse."

The other victim's parents did not appear for the sentencing, authorities said. In that case, Bulmer was convicted with the help of DNA left on clothes, authorities said.