Pocono News Section

Former Courthouse Employee Guilty of Child Sex Crimes

Former Courthouse Employee Guilty of Child Sex Crimes - Friday, November 14, 2008 at 5:28PM EST

Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Friday, Nov 14, 2008 @ 05:28pm EST
STROUDSBURG - An emotional roller coaster ride is finally over for three children sexually corrupted by a Tobyhanna man. Former Monroe County Courthouse employee Michael Grego plead guilty to his crimes in May but withdrew his plea on sentencing day.

Friday, after a two day trial, his victim's finally heard a jury verdict.

From courthouse employee, to courthouse convict. Michael Grego was a maintenance worker at the Monroe County Courthouse when he was accused of committing sex crimes against children in 2006.

"What Mike Grego did was sick, disgusting and perverted," said Assistant District Attorney Mike Rakaczewski.

Officers said Grego frequently exposed himself to preteen girls at his home in Tobyhanna's Mushroom Farms Development. One child said he made her watch pornography. That victim also said Grego forced her to rub condiments on him. Most of the other accusations are too vulgar too list here.

Grego's attorney Thomas Pavlinic said, "He's maintained his innocence from the very beginning." He tried to convince the jury that Grego did nothing wrong. He explained, "We thought there was an enormous amount of reasonable doubt given the multiple inconsistencies that the children made about their own statements."

After about 6.5 hours of deliberations over two days the jury made a decision. It found Michael Grego guilty on 14 charges. They include indecent assault and attempted rape.

As jurors prepared to read their verdict, the victims all held hands. When that first guilty came out they all cheered but then things changed. The jury also found Grego not guilty on three of the less serious charges.

Rakaczewski said, "We think it was a just and fair verdict and we think justice was definitely served today."

However, Grego's attorney's disagree. Pavlinic said, "He lost his home, he lost his job, he lost the minimum savings that he had. There's not a penny to his name. He's destitute."

Michael Grego goes from maintaining the courthouse to maintaining his innocence. "It was humiliating for him," said Pavlinic.

Grego's attorneys have already made a motion to fight the verdict. His sentencing is scheduled for February. He will likely face at least 20 years behind bars.