Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announces that State Supreme Court Justice Christopher J. Burns has sentenced 41-year-old Elissa Pietrocarlo, 31-year-old Grace Pietrocarlo, and 23-year-old Annabel Pietrocarlo to a determinate sentence of 2 years in prison followed by 3 years of post-release supervision.

The three sisters, while acting in concert with each other, intentionally caused physical injury to their 71-year-old father inside their home on North Creek Road in the Town of Hamburg. All co-defendants repeatedly committed acts over an extended period of time to intentionally place their father in fear of physical injury.

Starting in about 2002, Elissa Pietrocarlo, also known as “The Prophet,” began claiming to receive messages from God. One of the messages indicated that her father was being unfaithful to her mother, 66-year-old Christine Pietrocarlo, who the family considers the “Queen of God.” As a result, her father was no longer permitted to sleep in the martial bed, and he was forced to sleep on a couch in the kitchen.

The physical and emotional abuse began after the false accusations of infidelity. When the victim denied their claims, he would allegedly be beaten by the women in the household. The victim was isolated from the family and relegated to a small area of the kitchen, which was separated from the rest of the house by a curtain. He would sleep fully clothed on the couch because the alleged attacks would happen at any point in the night, and he would be forcibly removed from the home by the women, which resulted in the victim sleeping in his pickup truck.

On September 9, 2017, at approximately 4 p.m., the victim was on his computer in his area of the kitchen, when his wife, Christine Pietrocarlo, accused him of defiling her name online to his friend. He was then surrounded by his wife and daughters who demanded that he give them money. His daughter Annabel then choked the victim from behind, forced him to the ground, and took $1,100 in cash from the victim’s pocket.

Once the victim was on the floor, all three co-defendants repeatedly kicked and punched him. When the attack stopped, the victim pleaded to his family for help. After receiving no help, the victim crawled from the kitchen to his pickup truck that was parked in the driveway. He struggled to get into the vehicle and had to stop twice due to the severe pain, but he managed to drive himself to Mercy Hospital in Orchard Park. He was treated for a fractured rib and a bruised spleen.

When the victim was released from the hospital, he called his wife to ask for permission to come home. The threats continued when the victim returned home from the hospital. The women told the victim he was not allowed inside the house during daylight hours, and threatened to “break every bone in his body” if he did so. The victim disclosed the abuse to his friend of 25 years who contacted police and requested that the officers conduct a welfare check.

In May 2019, Justice Burns found the three defendants guilty of one count of Assault in the Second Degree, a Class “D” violent felony. The judge rendered his decision following a three-day bench trial.

Annabel Pietrocarlo was found guilty of an additional charge of Petit Larceny, a Class “A” misdemeanor, for stealing the cash from her father’s pocket. Judge Burns sentenced her to a determinate sentence of 6 months of incarceration, which will be served concurrent to her sentence on the assault conviction.

Judge Burns acquitted the victim’s wife, Christine Pietrocarlo, who was charged with Robbery in the Second Degree and Menacing in the Second Degree.

As part of their sentence, Judge Burns issued a final no-contact order of protection on behalf of the victim, which remains in effect until July 15, 2024.

“This is one of the most horrific cases of abuse that has been prosecuted by my office. For years, these women emotionally, financially, and physically abused their own father,” said Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn. “I commend the victim for having the strength to come forward about the abuses he endured at the hands of his own children. I hope that he feels justice has been served by these women being found guilty and sentenced to be a period of incarceration.”

DA Flynn commends Det. Sgt. Paul Randall, Officer Bret McCabe, Officer Dan Cronmiller of the Town of Hamburg Police Department, and Erie County Adult Protective Services for their work in this investigation.

The case was prosecuted by Holly Tucker, Chief of the DA’s Domestic Violence Bureau, and Assistant District Attorney Stephen Earnhart of the DA’s Special Victims Bureau.