| For Immediate Release Case # 03SF0600 March 6, 2008 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami |
WIFE SENTENCED TO 50 YEARS IN PRISON FOR MAKING SEX TAPES AND SEXUALLY ASSAULTING
4-YEAR-OLD GIRL WITH HER HUSBAND
SANTA ANA – A 28-year-old woman was sentenced today to 50 years in prison for repeatedly molesting a 4-year-old girl with her husband in their Rancho Santa Margarita home. Sheila Marie Sikat was found guilty on December 18, 2007 of 55 charges, including 26 counts of anal or genital penetration by a foreign object of a minor under 14 years of age, 13 counts of lewd acts upon a child, 10 counts of oral copulation on a person under 14 years of age, five counts of using a minor for sex acts, and one count of sodomy on a person under the age of 14 with 10 years difference in age.
Sikat’s husband, David Shoutyh Hwang, 36, pleaded guilty on October 11, 2006 to 60 counts of various child molest charges and was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison.
Between January 1, 2001 and February 1, 2003, Sikat and Hwang brought Jane Doe to their home on five separate occasions in order to molest her. They sexually assaulted her and committed the acts named above, and also produced video tapes totaling almost four hours of explicit pornographic content featuring Jane Doe. In one video, Sikat can be seen giving Jane Doe some type of liquid, rendering the victim unconscious. Sikat and Hwang then molested the victim while she was heavily sedated.
The graphic sexual tapes were discovered by a housesitter who was taking care of the defendants’ home while they were on vacation. The house sitter found over 200 video tapes in a trunk in the master bedroom and, for fear of her safety, sent an anonymous copy to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
After the conviction, several jurors sought counseling because of the emotional impact of watching the graphic molest of Jane Doe on video.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Beth Carmichael prosecuted this case.
###