CLEARFIELD – A former Clearfield County man accused of sexual assault waived all charges to court at his preliminary hearing Wednesday at the Clearfield County Jail.
Gary Lynn Wigfield, 61, of Butler has been charged with five counts each of aggravated indecent assault/person less than 13 years; indecent assault/person less than 13 years; and indecent exposure. Bail has been set at $100,000.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, on July 11 state police at Clearfield received a report from Children & Youth Services after the victim who is now 22 years old told a therapist she was sexually abused by Wigfield when she was about four or five years old.
During an interview with state police, the victim said Wigfield would often take her and her sister who would have been 5 or 6 years old at the time for walks in the woods in the summertime. She alleged he would put his hands down their pants.
She also alleged that at one point, he pulled his pants down and tried to get them to touch him. When he did this, she told him no because it felt wrong. The incidents occurred off-and-on for about a year, and Wigfield told them it was OK and they didn’t need to tell their mother, she told state police.
On July 25 a second victim who is now 23 years old reported her and her sister were in Wigfield’s truck and he covered them with a blanket. He allegedly put his hand down her pants while he was driving. When asked how often this occurred, she said “almost every time.”
One time Wigfield wanted her to get into the shower with him. He also had inappropriate sexual relations with her on occasions at his residence, according to the affidavit.
During the investigation, state police accessed information from a previous incident involving the second victim. While reviewing a report from 2000, state police learned a doctor examined her and determined she had injuries resulting in severe trauma. The second victim was reluctant to talk then but had indicated where she was injured on a picture for CYS.
Wigfield appeared Oct. 5 for an interview at the state police Butler barracks. He allegedly admitted to inappropriately touching the girls on several occasions but was unable to provide any exact dates. Until then, he hadn’t spoken to anyone about it and felt bad.