A man accused of sexually assaulting a girl in 2009 told authorities he was assaulted by another male inmate at Eastern Regional Jail early Tuesday, according to Berkeley County Magistrate Court records.
The accused inmate, Aaron J. Stanback, 26, of Ronceverte, W.Va., was arraigned Tuesday on one count of first-degree sexual assault by Magistrate Charles C. Cole Sr., according to court documents.
Police said Stanback indicated the encounter with John Paul Knipple Jr. was consensual and that he didn’t mean to hurt him, according to court documents.
Knipple, 31, was taken to City Hospital in Martinsburg following the alleged encounter and West Virginia State Police Trooper G.W. Merkich III said he confirmed with doctors and nurses that the man was assaulted, according to court documents.
Knipple was indicted on multiple felony counts stemming from the allegations involving the girl, who police were told was 2 years old at the time of the assault, according to court records.
Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney Pamela Games-Neely said Knipple’s trial is set for the first week of June.
