Niagara Falls Man Who Chained and Raped Woman Gets Sentenced

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Credit: WIVB

The Niagara County District Attorney, Brian Seaman, announced that 27-year-old Michael Ciskiewic has been sentenced for keeping a woman chained in his basement and raping her. The District Attorney's Office said the victim was a neighbor of Ciskiewic. The Niagara Falls, New York, man kept the victim in his home, on Monroe Avenue, where the assault happened. He chained her ankles with padlocks and taped her wrists. He also stuffed socks in her mouth and taped over it. According to a report from WIVB back in February of 2020, police were able to find the woman with the help of a bloodhound dog.

Authorities say the gruesome assault happened on June 6, 2019. In December of 2019, Ciskiewic pleaded guilty to predatory sexual assault. Today, Monday, March 8, 2021, he was sentenced by judge Matthew J. Murphy III to 12 years to life in prison.

In the statement the District Attorney's Office released on Facebook, Seaman said,

“This sentence assures the public that this dangerous predator will be incarcerated or under supervision for the rest of his life.”

I don't know the specific terms of his sentence, but 12 years seems a bit on the light side. I realize it's "12 years to life," but still 12 years seems too lenient for his crime. I can only imagine how traumatized his victim will be for the rest of her life. This is the type of stuff you see on the Investigation Discovery or Oxygen channel, not what you expect to happen in Niagara Falls. Thankfully the dog found her, if not, who knows what sick stuff he would have done or if she would even be alive today. For the safety of women in Western New York, I think the sentence should lean more towards the "to life" part.