Lang
4/19/24
A North Liberty man accused of having sex with a ten-year-old girl while he was a teenager has been given a 50-year prison sentence.
22-year-old Wilmer Garcia Espinal was 16 at the time of the incidents in July of 2017. Police say he engaged in sexual intercourse with the then-ten-year-old victim at a residence in Iowa City. The victim provided child protection workers with a detailed account of the incident, as well as other incidents of abuse by Garcia Espinal. She also told authorities that he messaged her and asked her to be his girlfriend. He claimed the messages were taken out of context.
Police say evidence tying Garcia Espinal to the scene of the crimes includes a photo of him with the girl on one of the nights in question and metadata from the girl’s phone showing a photo of Garcia Espinal at the residence where at least one of the assaults took place.
The 50-year sentence handed down by Judge Elizabeth Dupuich was the maximum allowed for two 2nd Degree Sexual Abuse convictions. Garcia Espinal was acquitted on a third count.