[PA] Allowed-to-resign Philadelphia Officer Wiggins sentenced to 17 to 35 years for dad-like sex asasult

..."My whole childhood was take away from me before it even began. . . . You knew I was a vulnerable child with nowhere to run and no one to turn to and you took advantage of me"... "He told me I was his girlfriend and he was in love with me," she said. "He told others I was his daughter"...

PREVIOUS POST:

[PA] Victim of Philadelphia police Officer Tyrone Wiggins: "I want to tell anyone who is a potential victim to come forward..." - After an internal investigation that allegedly took the Internal Affairs department TWO YEARS, Philadelphia police Officer Tyrone Wiggins was allowed to resign one day before he was arrested, which protects his pension. - Prosecutors said Wiggins targeted the victim when she was 10 and spent two years ingratiating himself with her family... Wiggins denied the charge and insisted that all he ever was to the young woman was a mentor, godfather and karate instructor... After he'd become like a "godfather" to the victim and her brother, the victim told jurors that Wiggins showed her a pornographic video then "exposed himself and had her perform a sex act on him"... [His attorney, Scott] Sigman said Wiggins was like a father to the woman...

FORMER PHILA. COP SENTENCED FOR SEX ASSAULT

abclocal.go.com

March 25, 2011

[Excerpts] A former Philadelphia police officer has been sentenced for sexually assaulting a girl over an eight-year-period. Tyrone Wiggins, 51, was sentenced to 17 ½ to 35 years in prison on Friday. He was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $5,000 restitution to the victim... The victim is now a member of the Philadelphia police department. [Full article here]

RETIRED COP GETS 35 YEARS IN CHILD SEX ASSAULT

Philadelphia Inquirer

Joseph A. Slobodzian

March 25, 2011

[Excerpts] A decorated, retired Philadelphia police officer and martial arts instructor - found guilty of sexually assaulting a female student for six years start when she was 12 - was sentenced to 17 1/2 to 35 years this morning by a Philadelphia judge... "This was a case of child abuse carried out against a victim by an assailant she trusted, someone she saw as a mentor," [Common Pleas Court Judge Sandy] Byrd said. Wiggins, who retired in November 2009 after 23 years with the police department just one day before his arrest, was found guilty by a Common Pleas Court jury in December of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, statutory sexual assault, and corrupting a minor. Defense attorney Scott P. Sigman urged Byrd to sentence Wiggins to no more than the mandatory minimum five years, citing Wiggins' service as a Marine, a law enforcement career in which Wiggins garnered awards for valor, was shot making an arrest, and taught karate to thousands of children and adults... But a Philadelphia jury believe the victim, now a 26-year-old Philadelphia police officer... The victim made a brief impact statement in which she said, "My whole childhood was take away from me before it even began. . . . You knew I was a vulnerable child with nowhere to run and no one to turn to and you took advantage of me." With no DNA or other forensic evidence, the jury had to weigh the credibility of Wiggins, a polished and poised man with a commanding presence, and the victim, a soft-spoken woman who barely looked at her former mentor without breaking down... [Assistant District Attorney Mark] Cipoletti said Wiggins began a two-year "grooming process" during which Wiggins insinuated himself into her family and became a self-described "godfather" to the girl and her brother... "He told me I was his girlfriend and he was in love with me," she said. "He told others I was his daughter"... [Full article here]

[police officer involved domestic violence oidv intimate partner violence ipv abuse law enforcement public safety abuse of power custodial rape child abuse children philadelphia state politics]