Convicted sex offender Jerry Sandusky was sentenced early Tuesday morning to 30 to 60 years in prison for raping several young boys over a period of at least fifteen years.

The former Penn State assistant football coach was sentenced by Judge John Cleland in Centre County Court, a punishment that some official say effectively places Sandusky, 68, in prison for the remainder of his life.

“Your crime is not only what you did to their bodies, but your assault on their psyche and their souls," Judge Cleland said in a published report. “The tragedy of this story is it is a story of betrayal. Some of your victims had a genuine affection for you. It is precisely that ability to conceal those vices from yourself and everyone else that in my view makes you dangerous.”

Sandusky was convicted on 45 counts of child sex abuse for molesting 10 boys over 15 years, accosting some of the victims in the football team's showers on campus. He continued to maintain the story that he committed no crimes. In a statement recorded in the jail’s visitor’s room, Sandusky said the allegations against him were part of a “well orchestrated effort by the media, the university and others. He also said his defense team didn’t have enough time to prepare for his trial and he vowed to continue to fight to prove his innocence.

“They can take away my life, they can make me out as a monster, they can treat me as a monster, but they can't take away my heart,” Sandusky said. “In my heart, I know I did not do these alleged, disgusting acts. My wife has been my only sex partner and that was after marriage. Our love continues. A young man who is dramatic and a veteran accuser and always sought attention started everything. He was joined by a well-orchestrated effort of the media, investigators, the system, Penn State, psychologists, civil attorneys and other accusers. They won. I've wondered what they really won. Attention, financial gain, prestige will all be temporary.”