CLEARFIELD – A Butler man accused of sexually assaulting two girls in the late 1990’s was sentenced Monday during a special sentencing session.
Gary Lynn Wigfield, 61, pleaded guilty to five counts each of aggravated indecent assault and indecent assault before President Judge Fredric J. Ammerman.
He was sentenced to 44 months to 10 years in state prison. He was ordered to complete sexual offender counseling and he must submit to DNA testing.
Although he was determined not to be a sexually violent predator, he must still register his address with law enforcement under Megan’s Law.
The charges stem from incidents when Wigfield would take the two daughters of his girlfriend for walks in the woods near their home in Brisbin. The girls were four to six years old at the time.
Prior to sentencing, Wigfield addressed the court apologizing for his actions.
Ammerman commented that just because he “said he is sorry doesn’t mean he understands the affect on them,” adding that this is something that will pain the girls for their entire life and never go away.
First Assistant District Attorney Ryan Dobo stated that it obviously affected them because they went to the police years later.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, one of the girls told her therapist that she was abused by Wigfield when she was four or five years old. She is now 22 years old.
He would put his hands down their pants and he also pulled his pants down and tried to get them to touch him.
She remembered telling him no because she felt it was wrong. Wigfield told her what he was doing was OK and they didn’t need to tell their mother. This went on for about a year until their mother found another place to live.
When an officer spoke with the victim’s older sister, she remembered them being in Wigfield’s truck where he would cover them with a blanket as he put his hand down her pants.
She recalled another time that he wanted her to get into the shower with him. She also remembered other occasions when he assaulted her on his bed.
She said it stopped after she was in school and had a hard time walking because she was sore. She stated she was taken to a doctor and found to have an injury she described as being something adults get and children should not have. She remembered the police were involved but she wouldn’t name the perpetrator.
An investigator found a report from a doctor dated March of 2000. It said she examined the girl and determined she suffered abrasions and bruising.
When Wigfield was questioned by police in October of 2016, he acknowledged that while he was involved with their mother, he inappropriately touched the girls. He said he has never spoken to anyone about these actions and he felt bad about them.
