Lemont Furnace man convicted of sex abuse
A Fayette County jury returned a guilty verdict against a Lemont Furnace man accused of sexually abusing two young children in 2011.
Joseph Trifiro, 27, was convicted Monday of two counts of aggravated indecent assault and two counts of indecent assault of a person under the age of 13, after jurors heard testimony about an incident that occurred in September 2011 while Trifiro was baby-sitting two girls who were ages 4 and 6 at the time. The trial started late last week.
According to state police Trooper Heather Clem, the charges were filed against Trifiro after the girls’ father called police to report he suspected his daughters were assaulted and took them to a doctor. Clem said that both girls told police that Trifiro touched them inappropriately.
The Herald-Standard does not identify victims of sexual assault.
Judge Steve P. Leskinen presided over the trial and will sentence Trifiro for those crimes at a later date.
Trifiro is already serving time in Fayette County Prison for other crimes.
On Feb. 5, a jury found Trifiro guilty of violating Megan’s Law requirements for registered sex offenders. Those charges were filed against Trifiro by state police in August 2010 after he failed to follow proper registration procedures in June 2010. He was sentenced to two to four years in prison in that case.
Trifiro became a registered sex offender after being convicted in 2010 of gross sexual imposition in an out-of-state case.
On Feb. 26, Trifiro was sentenced to six to 23 months in jail after pleading guilty to two counts of possession with intent to deliver heroin, one count of possession of heroin and a single count of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Trifiro was arrested on the drug charges after police said a confidential informant, working with the county drug task force, made two undercover purchases of heroin from Trifiro at his residence in April 2012.