Man acquitted of charges related to sending Hannibal Lecter photo to judge

GREENSBURG, Pa. — A Monessen man accused of sending a picture of Hannibal Lecter to a Westmoreland County judge has been acquitted on all charges.

Testimony began Wednesday in the harassment trial of Gregg Tchirkow, and after closing arguments Friday a decision was quickly reached

>>PREVIOUS STORY: Man who threatened judge using image of Hannibal Lecter now on trial

According to prosecutors, the picture was included in one of 18 letters Tchirkow sent to Judge Meagan Bilik-Defazio.

>>PREVIOUS STORY: Man who sent Hannibal Lecter photo to judge to go on trial

Bilik-Defazio told the jury she felt disturbed and scared after she and her staff received the picture of the "Silence of the Lambs" character, but Tchirkow said that was never his intention.

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"Again, I want to apologize to Judge Defazio if I made her feel uncomfortable. That wasn’t my intention, Tchirkow said after the verdict. "I wanted her understanding."

The letter was one of nearly two dozen he sent the judge from prison, where he was serving a sentence for running a marijuana growing operation.

"It was in a magazine that was available," Tchirkow said. "Some guy in a jail cell. (The media) ran with the Hannibal Lecter thing it had no bearing on it."

The jury spent about an hour deliberating before returning with the unanimous decision. And their belief in his defense is having a profound impact on Tchirkow.

"I’m going to thank the jury by living the most honorable productive life that I possibly can," he said.

Cox Media Group