Calling the actions “a special kind of sick,” a federal judge on Thursday sentenced a man to 60 years in prison for sexually assaulting a young relative for years and recording her abuse.
“You were born a free man. I will not have you die that way,” U.S. District Judge Raymond Moore told 62-year-old Mervin Edy Wolf before sentencing him. “I view you as being completely out of control.”
Prosecutor Judith Smith had sought a 90-year sentence.
Wolf, who asked for mercy, had pleaded guilty to charges of traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and production of child pornography.
The girl was living with California relatives of Wolf, who moved to Colorado from that state in 1999, court records show.
Wolf traveled twice a year to California for Christmas holidays and summer vacations for seven years.
He coaxed her to remove her clothing when she was 7 and, starting the next year, began sexually assaulting her. He would sexually assault her and take video of the abuse.
“To do it with your relatives in the next room is a special kind of sick,” Moore told Wolf.
The girl, who is now 15, stood at a lectern and read a letter to the judge, describing the time when he sent her two pregnancy tests and offered to pay for an abortion if needed.
“Can you imagine what it was like to be an eighth-grader and believe you might be pregnant by your molester?” the girl said.
She said she has feelings of sadness and anger, has nightmares and is afraid to be alone. She worries about the images possibly being on the Internet.
“He deserves to be put away,” the girl said.
The girl went to authorities this year when she learned he was coming to visit.
She “explained she was afraid Wolf would start molesting (her) younger sibling,” according to the complaint.
