Plea Lessens Palm Coast Child Rapist’s Sentence to 10 Years in Prison, 20 on Probation

Update, Feb. 4, 2016–Andrew S. Wilson, the 56-year-old Palm Coast resident accused of raping his step-daughter when she was younger than 12 some two decades ago, pleaded guilty to a rape charge and will serve 10 years in prison. He gets about half a year’s credit, which he served at the Flagler County jail. His bond had been set at $500,000.

Circuit Judge J. David Walsh accepted the plea Tuesday.

The plea deal grants Wilson a lighter sentence. He pleaded to raping a child younger than 18, a charge that would have still had him face up to 30 years in prison had he pressed the case and been found guilty. The plea agreement reduces the prison sentence to 10 years but followed by 20 years’ probation as a sex offender. The sex offender designation will be permanent, requiring Wilson to register and check in with police regularly. He had been a resident of 82 Brushwood Lane in Palm Coast.

Wilson was arrested on July 15 and declined to speak with police at the time.

The previous story is below.

Palm Coast Man Held on $500,000 Bond Over Accusations of Drugging and Raping a Child

July 16, 2015—Andrew S. Wilson may not have to look over his shoulder anymore. Wednesday evening (July 15), the 55-year-old resident of 82 Brushwood Lane in Palm Coast was arrested on a count of raping a child younger than 12, based on alleged incidents that took place two decades ago, and jailed at the Flagler County Jail, where he remains today on $500,000 bond.

The arrest is the result of a report by a woman to law enforcement on Jan. 9, when the woman told a Flagler County Sheriff’s detective that Wilson allegedly sexually assaulted her repeatedly when she was between 9 and 12 years old, when Wilson would have been between 32 and 35 years old. That places the incidents in the early to mid-1990s. The location of the alleged incidents was not disclosed.

At the time, Wilson had custodial responsibility for the then-child. She told a detective, according to his arrest report, that “on the nights her mother would work her second job, she would be left home with Wilson. He would give her alcoholic beverages and force her to perform oral sex on him.” The alleged victim said “this became Wilson’s practice.”

The report continues that “after a few times, she began pretending to fall asleep after drinking the alcohol, but this did not stop Wilson from performing sexual acts on her. While [the alleged victim] would pretend to sleep, Wilson would rub his genitals on her face and remove her clothing, then have sexual intercourse with her.” The alleged victim told detectives that she does not remember how many times that happened, “but remembers being forced to give Wilson oral sex, vaginal sex and even anal sex on a few occasions.”

The woman told detectives that she had disclosed the information to her mother sometime in 2008, and Wilson was confronted with the allegation. “Wilson did not deny the allegations,” the arrest report states, but he allegedly made the comment: “So I have to look over my shoulder from now on.”

The allegations were never reported to law enforcement until January.

On July 15, Circuit Judge J. David Walsh signed a warrant for Wilson’s arrest. Wilson reported to the Flagler County Sheriff’s investigative services division at 5:40 Wednesday afternoon to be interviewed in the case. He declined to speak with a detective, and was arrested.

The charge Wilson faces is a capital felony, exposing him to life in prison without parole if convicted.