The Bachelorette's Lincoln Adim Has Been Convicted of Indecent Assault and Battery

One of the contestants on Becca Kufrin's season of The Bachelorette was convicted of a serious crime days before the show premiered in May.

TV Guide has confirmed that Lincoln Adim was convicted of indecent assault and battery in Boston, Mass. on May 21, after filming was completed. The news was first reported by Reality Steve and former Bachelor contestant Ashley Spivey.

The Suffolk County District Attorney's office provided this statement to Spivey:

"Mr. Adim was convicted on May 21, 2018 of indecent assault and battery for groping and assaulting an adult female on a harbor cruise ship early on May 30, 2016. He was sentenced to one year in a house of correction, with that term suspended for a two-year probationary period. The judge ordered him to stay away from the victim and attend three Alcoholics Anonymous meetings per week during those two years. If he complies with the judge's orders, he will not have to serve out his term, but if he fails to comply with those orders or re-offends, he could be ordered to serve out the year behind bars."

Adim -- who has not been eliminated through the show's fourth episode -- may have to register as a sex offender, according to a general statement on what happens if one is convicted of indecent assault and battery on the website of Boston-based defense attorney Stephen Neyman.

The Bachelor and The Bachelorette have had issues with failure to properly investigate contestants' social media histories for problematic content, but this is a larger, potentially more complicated oversight than those.

Warner Bros. has since released a statement denying knowledge of the incident.

"No one on The Bachelorette production had any knowledge about the incident or charges when Lincoln Adim was cast, and he himself denied ever having engaged in or having been charged with any sexual misconduct," the statement says. "We employ a well-respected and highly experienced third party who has done thousands of background checks consistent with industry standards to do a nationwide background check in this case. The report we received did not reference any incident or charge relating to the recent conviction - or any other charges relating to sexual misconduct. We are currently investigating why the report did not contain this information, which we will share when we have it."

The Bachelorette airs Mondays at 8/7c on ABC.