NEWPORT — A man convicted of sexually assaulting multiple girls since the 1980s was sentenced to a minimum of 20 years in prison Monday.
Alan Wirkkala, 52, of Newport, pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault, two counts of first-degree assault and one count of assault by a prisoner Monday. Wirkkala, who was convicted on two additional counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault in December, was sentenced on all eight charges Monday. He will serve 20 to 45 years for six of the charges, and he faces a two- to 15-year suspended sentence for the prisoner assault charge and one of the sexual assault charges.
Superior Court Judge Brian Tucker also barred him from contacting the four victims or their families and ordered Wirkkala to register as a sex offender once he’s released from prison.
According to prosecutors, Wirkkala assaulted four girls between the ages of 5 and 16 years old, starting in 1985. Many of the charges stem from incidents in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but one aggravated felonious sexual assault count is from a 2012 assault on a teenager.
The prisoner assault charge comes from an incident on Aug. 27 when Wirkkala hit fellow inmate Ray Comstock in the face in the Sullivan County House of Corrections, according to a Sept. 25 indictment.
Sullivan County Attorney Marc Hathaway said Wednesday that prosecutors are pleased with the outcome.
“It addresses the crimes that were committed against these young women — and now mature women — in a responsible way,” he said, adding that the sentence allows for both a “significant punishment” and the possibility of rehabilitation.
As part of his sentence, Wirkkala will need to undergo sex offender assessment and treatment while he’s incarcerated.
Hathaway also praised the victims, whom he said were “always available,” and worked closely with the state during the investigation.
Claremont police started investigating Wirkkala in 2018 after several victims came forward with allegations of abuse that happened three decades earlier. A jury in August had acquitted Wirkkala of two charges of aggravated felonious sexual assault but came back hung on two other charges; he was convicted on those charges in a subsequent trial in December.
Anna Merriman can be reached at amerriman@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.