Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that a jury found a 42-year-old Lindenhurst man[1] guilty of raping his twelve-year-old daughter and sexually abusing his eight-year-old daughter.
“The abuse that these two girls suffered at the hands of their father is reprehensible. This defendant violated his role as a father in the most despicable way,” said District Attorney Tierney. “I am humbled by the bravery of the victims in coming forward, and hope that this guilty verdict will allow them to feel some measure of peace after what they endured.”
The evidence at trial established that in early 2016, the defendant went into a room where his then eight-year-old daughter was resting. The defendant sexually abused the child and told her to clean herself up afterward and watched as she showered. That daughter did not disclose the abuse until 2021, when she told her mother what occurred.
Following that disclosure, the defendant’s older daughter told her mother that in April 2013, when she was twelve years old, the defendant raped and sexually abused her also, in that he woke her up by committing sexual acts against her.
Once she was awake, the defendant then had sexual intercourse with her, causing significant pain. When the child reacted to the pain, the defendant told her that she had wet the bed and she needed to clean herself.
After both daughters disclosed the abuse, their mother contacted the Suffolk County Police Department and the defendant was arrested. Following his arrest, the defendant sent a letter to the victims’ mother, indicating that he was sorry for what he had done.
On September 8, 2023, the defendant was found guilty after a jury trial heard before County Court Judge, the Honorable Karen M. Wilutis, of the following charges:
- One count of Rape in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony;
- One count of Criminal Sex Act in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony;
- Two counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, a Class D violent felony; and
- One Count of Criminal Contempt, a Class A misdemeanor.
The defendant is due back in court for sentencing on October 11, 2023, and faces up to 32 years in prison. He will also be required to register as a sex offender. The defendant is being represented by Christopher Gioe, Esq.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Zachary Kelly of the Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Bureau and Chase Brown of the District Court Trial Bureau, with investigative assistance from Detective Adolfo Berrios of the Suffolk County Police Department’s Special Victims Section.
Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.