District Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison For Child Sexual Abuse of His Stepdaughter Offenses Took Place Over Multiple Years

            WASHINGTON – A 28-year-old man, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for sexually abusing his stepdaughter over a period of several years, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            The man, who is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victim, was found guilty by a jury in October 2014 of multiple counts of first-degree and second-degree child sexual abuse, with aggravating circumstances. He was sentenced by the Honorable John Ramsey Johnson. Upon completion of his prison term, the man will be placed on 10 years of supervised release. He also will be required to register as a sex offender for a period of 10 years.

            According to the government’s evidence, the defendant began molesting his stepdaughter in 2008 or early 2009, when she was 7 or 8 years old. He escalated the inappropriate touching to full sexual intercourse when she turned 11. The abuse occurred primarily on weekends, when the victim’s mother was at work, and continued until May of 2014 when the stepdaughter, then 13, disclosed the abuse to her mother, who contacted police.

            The victim testified that for years, she was afraid to disclose the abuse for a number of reasons, including a claim by the defendant that no one would believe her.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the detectives of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Investigations Division, who investigated the case, and the patrol officers who first responded to the scene.  He also acknowledged the critical services provided to the victim at the District of Columbia Children’s Advocacy Center, and the specialized medical treatment provided by the team of child abuse experts at the Freddie Mac Child and Adolescent Protection Center at the Children’s National Medical Center. In addition, he commended the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Elsa Resendiz, David Foster, and Katina Adams-Washington, all of the Victim/Witness Assistance Unit; Criminal Investigator John Marsh; Paralegal Specialist Joyce Arthur; Information Technology Specialists Jeanie Latimore-Brown and Anisha Bhatia; and interns Cristina Stam, Melissa Garcia, and Brittany Raia.

            Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys John L. Hill and Kenechukwu Okocha, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

15-032