An Elizabethtown man will serve up to 20 years incarceration after being found guilty by a jury of sexually abusing a 12 year-old child on West Ferdinand Street in Manheim Borough.
On Friday June 11, Judge Thomas Sponaugle sentenced Jesus DeJesus-Gonzalez to 10-20 years in a state correctional institution followed by 3 years of probation on charges of Aggravated Indecent Assault, Indecent Assault, Intimidation of a Witness, Corruption of Minors and Unlawful Contact with a Minor. In March of 2018, DeJesus-Gonzalez sexually assaulted the child as she slept in the basement of her home. During the assault, DeJesus-Gonzalez told the victim that he would give her $5 dollars if she did not tell anyone, which he did the next morning before she went to school. As part of the sentence, DeJesus-Gonzalez is required to register as a sex offender for life.
The sentence of 10-20 years was the maximum allowed by law for the Aggravated Indecent Assault charge. However, Assistant District Attorney Fritz Haverstick argued that consecutive sentences for the Intimidation, Corruption and Unlawful Contact counts were warranted given DeJesus-Gonzalez’s exploitation of the close relationship he had with the victim over her life.
Charges were filed by Detective Aaron Szulborski of the Manheim Borough Police Department.