A 34-year-old Washington man has been accused of raping and sending sexually suggestive messages to a teenage girl who viewed him as a father figure. According to court documents, the Sultan resident worked as a corrections officer and volunteered at an elementary school at the time of the alleged incidents. He is also said to have once served as a PTA president and Girl Scout leader. He was taken into custody on Oct. 8.
The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation into the man’s alleged activities after the victim’s mother reported finding sexually explicit messages on social media. The SCSO says the man and the girl communicated with each other on Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram over a period of about two years. The intimate relationship is alleged to have begun in 2017 when the girl was 13 years old. Prosecutors say the man met the girl while doing volunteer work for the Girl Scouts in 2015.
Court documents reveal that the man has been charged with multiple counts of rape of a child in the second degree and communicating with a minor with immoral intentions. After being taken into custody, he was transported to the Snohomish County Jail. Prosecutors established sufficient probable cause to hold the man on Oct. 10. During the probable cause hearing, prosecutors said that other victims may step forward.
Criminal defense attorneys often seek to resolve cases involving sex crimes during plea negotiations when the facts are likely to inflame a jury. Prosecutors are usually under great pressure to secure a conviction when presented with facts like these, and they may be willing to make sentencing concessions to avoid the risks of a trial.
Source: The Washington Herald, “Monroe prison guard, ex-scouts volunteer accused of child rape”, Caleb Hutton, Oct. 9, 2019
