Suffolk County district attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced that a 45-year-old Bay Shore man was found guilty after a jury trial of multiple counts of criminal sexual act in the first degree, which were committed against his stepdaughter when she was between the ages of 10 and 11 years old.
The District Attorney’s Office is not naming the defendant in order to protect the identity of the child victim.
“This defendant preyed upon his stepdaughter to satisfy his own twisted sexual desires,” said Tierney. “First, I commend this young victim for her courage in contacting the police and then testifying at trial against her abuser. I also want to thank the jury for their attention in this case and for helping to ensure that this defendant is held accountable for his heinous crimes.”
The evidence at trial established that from August 2021 through October 2021, the defendant sexually abused his stepdaughter on three separate occasions while the victim’s mother was at work. When the abuse began, the victim was 10 years old. The abuse ended when the then 11- year-old victim sent a text message to 911 reporting that her stepfather was trying to have sex with her, and that he had sexually abused her three times in the past. The child was taken for a sexual assault forensic examination, which confirmed DNA evidence of abuse.
On Dec. 22, 2021, the defendant was arrested by members of the Suffolk County Police Department.
On Feb. 22, 2024, the defendant was convicted after a jury trial, heard before County Court Judge, the Honorable Karen M. Wilutis, of three counts of criminal sexual act in the first degree, Class B violent felonies, and one count of endangering the welfare of a child, a Class A misdemeanor.
The defendant is due back in court for sentencing on March 25, 2024, where he faces up to 50 years in prison followed by 20 years of post-release supervision. He is being represented by the Suffolk County Legal Aid Society.
This case is being prosecuted by assistant district attorney Melissa Grier of the Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Bureau and assistant district attorney Kapish Barry of the Major Crime Bureau, with the investigation conducted by Det. Patrick Boyles of the Suffolk County Police Department’s Special Victims Section.
