Clementon Man Sentenced for Sexual Assault of Gloucester County 6-Year-Old

An illegal immigrant from Guatemala who was living in Clementon has been sentenced to 13 years in state prison after pleading guilty to two counts of sexually assaulting a child under the age of 13, the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office announced on Friday.

William A. Garcia, 35, acknowledged having sexual contact with a six year old child four times while he was renting a room from the girl’s mother in Williamstown between September and December 2005.

The offenses were disclosed to police in March of 2013, after which Garcia was arrested. He was living in Clementon at the time.

Garcia’s evaluation at the state’s Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center in Avenel determined that he was a repetitive offender but not compulsive, making him ineligible for treatment at the center while serving his sentence. Defendants must be found to be both repetitive and compulsive offenders to be committed to Avenel. Garcia did not object to the finding.

Therefore Garcia’s sentence will be “a straight state prison term” of 13 years for first-degree sexual assault and a concurrent five-year term for second-degree sexual assault. He must serve 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole.

Garcia said he could not explain his behavior, other than “it was the work of the devil inside him, or ignorance,” according to the prosecutor’s office.

“Aggravating” factors that favor incarceration include the risk of committing another offense and a prior record of two convictions for eluding police. The judge found no mitigating factors favoring leniency.

Garcia will be subject to the conditions of Megan’s Law for sex offenders, parole supervision for at least 15 years after prison and must comply with ”Nicole’s Law” a permanent restraining order prohibiting him from any contact with the victim.