A 22-year-old Hutchinson man who was arrested back in April in a child sex case will spend nearly 13-years in prison, but it could have been worse for Ryan Edward O’Keefe.
He enter pleas to rape, aggravated indecent liberties with a child and electronic solicitation. In exchange for the plea, the state agreed to seek a departure from a Jessica’s Law sentence which would have meant life in prison on two of the charges. Instead, he was sentenced to a total of 155-months in prison or just under 13-years. He admitted guilt for have a sexual encounter with a 13-year-old girl.
The crimes occurring between January 28 and January 30 of this year and the state made the agreement to keep the young girl from having to testify at trial.
The defendant apologized to the victim and her family even though they were not present in the courtroom. He told the judge that he takes “full responsibility” for what he did.