A former police chief went on trial Tuesday in Carbon County court on charges he raped and sexually assaulted a young girl.

Brent Getz, 31, of Lehighton, is facing charges of rape of a child, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child, aggravated indecent assault of a child and indecent assault of a child. He served at one time as chief of police in Weissport.

For almost three hours the victim of the alleged assaults testified that she was repeatedly raped by a relative, Gregory Wagner Jr., 30, of Lehighton, and Getz.

In November 2020, Wagner admitted in the county court to raping the girl repeatedly over a seven-year period. He entered the plea to rape of a child, a felony 1, and sexual exploitation of children, felony 2, before Judge Joseph J. Matika and is facing a state prison term when sentenced.

The girl said the abuse began when she was 4 by Wagner. It continued for a long period of time. Eventually Getz, who she said was friends with Wagner, would visit her home and he began to sexually assault her. She said Getz assaulted her five or six times; but in other interviews with authorities, she said the number of assaults was greater than that.

She said the assaults eventually ended by Getz after he stopped coming to the residence. She said she thought he stopped coming because he had a fight with Wagner.

She said the first time Getz assaulted her was by touching only. However, later assaults included her performing sex acts on him and Wagner and her being touched inappropriately by both men. The two men were in their teens at the time of the assaults, she said.

She said the two men took turns raping her in Wagner’s bedroom at the home. Most of the attacks occurred in the evening hours and sometimes in her bedroom.

The victim, now 21, said she first told family members that Wagner was touching her but they dismissed her allegation, stating he was not telling the truth. She said the family gave her little support. She was 4 at the time.

She quoted one family member saying that, “I should be the one in jail.”

In 2012 she told a substitute teacher at Lehighton about the assaults. The teacher then sent her to the school nurse. The nurse notified the county office of Children and Youth. The next day a member of the children and youth office came to her home to interview her. She said she later talked with an assistant district attorney. After she made the allegation to the teacher, she and her mother moved out of the house.

Arrangements were then made to take her to the Children’s Advocacy Center in Scranton.

On May 16, 2012, the victim was interviewed on video by a forensic interviewer in Scranton. She said that Wagner, on multiple occasions, touched her inappropriately. She said he also told her not to tell anyone. After that nothing happened, she said. She also admitted not mentioning Getz’s name at the center to anyone.

In August 2018 officer Frank Buonaiuto, of the Franklin Township police, contacted her and said he had taken over the case and wanted to speak to her. She was then 18.

She went to the police station and told the officer what had happened. She gave a written statement to the officer and agreed to have charges filed. She admitted she later went to Buonaiuto and told him she didn’t want any charges filed. She said it was due to pressure from family members who didn’t want Wagner arrested. She said one family member told her that she (the family member) would die if Wagner was arrested.

Under cross-examination by defense counsel Brian Collins, the girl admitted she did not mention Getz’s name to the teacher, nurse or at the center in Scranton. She only mentioned his name later when she met with a member of the Victim Resource Center in Jim Thorpe.

She said the caseworker at the center, who she identified as Tammy Nahf, told her not to say anything about Getz because it would cause confusion with the prosecution of Wagner.

Collins continued to press her why she failed to mention Getz’s name in the initial reporting of the incidents. She said she was afraid at the time.

He also questioned her about the number of alleged assaults by Getz. He noted from other interviews with authorities, she said Getz assaulted her weekly over a period of time, and if believed, Collins said, the attacks totaled over 700. He said she testified now that it occurred or five or six times.

Under redirect examination by Deputy Attorney General Rebecca Anne Elo, the victim said she never wrote down anything about the incidents, or wrote down dates and times.

Other witnesses

The victim’s mother testified she learned of the allegation by her daughter when she first told other members of the family who reported it to her. She said she learned of the report to the teacher at school the day a caseworker from children and youth arrived at her home. She said a short time later she moved out of the house with her daughter to Nesquehoning to live with her ex-husband.

Asked by Collins what she did during the period of time since the initial allegation was made until police contacted her daughter in 2018, about the attacks, the mother claimed she called the township police at least once a month but no one ever answered the phone. Asked if she contacted the district attorney or other police agencies, she said no.

The victim’s older sister testified she was contacted by the victim while at work concerning another matter. When she came to talk to her, that was when her sister told her about the assaults. She said her sister mentioned Getz’s name to her at that time as being involved in the assaults.

The trial was scheduled to continue today. Wagner is among witnesses expected to be called by Elo.

The AG office took over the case when then District Attorney Jean A. Engler recused her office from the case because Getz was a former police officer who had dealt with her office in the past. Engler then made a formal request for the AG office to take over the prosecution.