Man calls himself a 'disgusting monster' before being sent to prison for child rape

An Arona man who described himself as a “disgusting monster” was ordered Thursday to serve up to 40 years in prison for raping a child.

Michael Andrew Wiser, 35, told a Westmoreland County judge that as a former child victim of sexual assault he should have known better and was remorseful for his behavior with an 8-year-old girl last year.

“This should never have happened and it is 100% my fault. I don’t know if I can ever get all the help I need. I am a selfish, disgusting monster,” Wiser said as he read a letter to his victim during a sentencing hearing before Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio.

In February, Wiser pleaded guilty to charges that include rape of a child and two counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse. Prosecutors dismissed seven other criminal charges as part of the plea deal.

According to court records, police said the girl’s mother told investigators in July that she discovered Wiser sexually assaulting the child. The woman told troopers that when she confronted Wiser about the assault, he replied, “I did it.”

Wiser faced mandatory minimum sentences of 10-to-20 years in prison for all three offenses. Assistant District Attorney Judi Petrush argued Wiser should receive three consecutive sentences that would require to him serve at least 30 years in prison.

Assistant Public Defender Jennifer DeFlitch cited Wiser’s background as a victim of child sexual abuse as a potential basis to impose concurrent sentences.

The judge imposed two consecutive sentences of 10 to 20 years in prison and ordered Wiser to serve six years on probation. A third sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison will run concurrent to other penalties. Wiser is classified as a violent sexual predator and faces a lifetime requirement of registering with police as a convicted sex offender.

“Your words show you are remorseful and because you pleaded guilty at an early stage you saved the victim from testifying at a trial. If that had not happened, I would have given you the maximum sentence I possibly could,” Bilik-DeFazio said.