50-year-old sex offender rapes, impregnates 12-year-old

A convicted sex offender who impregnated a 12-year-old girl was sentenced to an additional 20 years behind bars on Friday.

NJ.com reported that Jose Anthony Caracciolo, of New York City, was already serving a 25-year sentence in federal prison for taking the girl from New Jersey to Pennsylvania and raping her in July 2012. The now-50-year-old, who was arrested in August 2013, pleaded guilty to first-degree aggravated sexual assault in September 2014.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Caracciolo had previously been required to register as a sex offender in California and had a lengthy criminal history.

In April 2013, prior to Caracciolo’s arrest, Egg Harbor, New Jersey, police were notified of the July 2012 sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl. Atlantic County Prosecutor Jim McClain said the girl was nine months pregnant when police got involved.

Investigators intercepted phone calls in which the then-48-year-old, who went by the alias “Joe Crillo,” admitted to fathering the tween’s child. He also mentioned that he was afraid the girl’s parents would find text messages between the two.

The Department of Justice said in September 2013 that Caracciolo was “in violation of his sex offender registration requirements since August 2005.” Wanted in California for failing to register, he was apprehended in New York City on August 28, 2013.

The circumstances that led to Caracciolo’s earlier sex offender registration are not known at this time.

According to court documents obtained by NJ.com, the 50-year-old pleaded guilty to federal charges related to taking the victim out of state in January.

The Prosecutor’s Office said that Caracciolo must serve at least 17 years of his state prison sentence before he can seek parole under the No Early Release Act. If released on parole, he will be under supervision for life and ordered to register under Megan’s Law.

 

[Featured Image: Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office]