Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announces that State Supreme Court Justice Christopher J. Burns has found 41-year-old Elissa Pietrocarlo, 31-year-old Grace Pietrocarlo, and 23-year-old Annabel Pietrocarlo guilty of one count of Assault in the Second Degree, a Class “D” violent felony. The judge rendered his decision after a three-day bench trial.

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 marital bed, and he was forced to sleep on a couch in the kitchen.

The physical and emotional abuse began after the 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.

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. 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 and the defendants left the house, 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.

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 to abuse to his friend who contacted police and requested that the officers conduct a welfare check.

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

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.

The three sisters each face a maximum of 7 years in prison when they are sentenced on Tuesday, July 16, 2019 at 9:30 a.m. The defendants remain released on bail.

“This is one of the most horrific cases of abuse that has been prosecuted by my office. I am outraged by the actions of these women who have emotionally, financially, and physically abused their father for years,” said Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn. “I commend the victim for having the strength to testify against his abusers who sadly are his own children. I also want to commend the friend who contacted the police after the victim came forward after years of enduring this abuse and also testified against these women.”

DA Flynn commends Det. Sgt. Paul Randall, Officer Bret McCabe, and Officer Dan Cronmiller of the Town of Hamburg Police Department as well as 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.