According to the court documents, the then 51-year-oId man, Frank, who repeatedly ‘indecently abused’ his daughter over a long period of time has finally been convicted after 10 years on the run. The defendant’s daughter, 31-year-old Heather, was repeatedly ra-ed by her father starting when she was just 3-years-old. According to her’s claims, her father told her he was teaching her how to express love.

He was sentenced to 19 to 95 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to ra-e and gross se-ual imposition. Following years of abuse, the father was eventually arrested and set to go to trial when Heather was 18 years old. However, days before the trial, Frank, Heather’s mother Judy, and Heathers brother fled to Germany. According to the New York Daily News, the couple used fake identities and ran a bar and grill for a decade. For years, Heather, who was abandoned by her family, struggled to have a normal life. After years of building up the courage to search for her father, Heather decided to run an Internet search for him.

When she Googled her father’s name, she found an article about her grandfather being arrested and charged for $1.2 million in tax fraud. She contacted some of the people who commented on the article, and eventually, was able to learn about her family’s connections in Germany. Using the new information, she pieced together where her father was hiding out. She contacted German authorities and passed along all of her newly acquired intel to them. They immediately began investigating Frank’s whereabouts – and sure enough, he was captured soon after. Frank will now likely spend the rest of his life in prison.

During court proceedings, he told the judge that he felt sorry for what he did. “It’s not the life that I wanted my daughter to have,” said Frank. “I wanted her life to be perfect.” Heather says that each and every day she struggles to find happiness. “I have lost my entire family,” Heather said. “I often wonder, if I hadn’t found him, what would have happened.” Heather, now a married mother, says she plans to write a book about the struggles she has faced throughout her life.