Great Falls man gets 100 years for role in gang rape
GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) — A Great Falls man convicted in the gang rape of a 15-year-old girl at a house party has been sentenced to 100 years in prison.
District Judge Greg Pinski said Friday 22-year-old Autree Aniel Pedersen will not be eligible for parole before serving 25 years and completing two phases of sex offender treatment.
Court records say Pedersen invited the victim to a party in July 2017. The girl testified she went into a bedroom to look for her phone when Pedersen and two other males followed her inside. She said Pedersen and a 16-year-old boy took turns raping her. The boy pleaded guilty in juvenile court.
Pedersen's attorney, Victor Bunitsky, sought a 10-year prison sentence, the same as offered in a plea agreement that Pedersen later withdrew. Pinski rejected a second plea agreement.