FAYETTE COUNTY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – A Meadow Bridge man has been sentenced to consecutive prison terms after being convicted of incest and third-degree sexual assault involving an intellectually disabled adult.
Fayette County Prosecuting Attorney Anthony Ciliberti Jr. announced that Gary W. McKnight, 64, was sentenced Sept. 21 by Circuit Court Judge Thomas K. Fast.
McKnight was sentenced to five to 15 years in prison for felony incest and one to five years for felony third-degree sexual assault. The sentences were ordered to run consecutively, meaning McKnight must serve at least six years before becoming eligible for parole.
McKnight was also fined $5,000 for each offense and sentenced to 25 years of extended supervised release after he completes parole or discharges his sentence.
According to the Fayette County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the investigation began Aug. 15, 2024, when the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department received a complaint alleging McKnight was sexually abusing a mentally disabled adult.
Investigators said the victim reported that McKnight had sexual intercourse with the victim on three separate occasions. Authorities determined the victim had a significant intellectual disability and functioned at the intellectual level of an 8-year-old child.
During the investigation, law enforcement received information that McKnight had used condoms during the alleged sexual assaults and discarded them in a bathroom trash can.
Investigators recovered two used condoms from a bathroom trash can while searching McKnight’s residence. Subsequent DNA testing determined that DNA from both McKnight and the victim was present on the condoms, according to prosecutors.
The case was investigated by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department Detective Bureau. Victim support services were provided by A.W.A.Y.
Ciliberti prosecuted the case on behalf of the Fayette County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
