Alleged LeRoy rapist enters plea deal

Published 11:11 am Thursday, June 30, 2011

A LeRoy man who reportedly raped a 15-year-old girl last September entered into a plea agreement in Mower County District Court on Wednesday afternoon.

Steven Michael Allen Collett, 26, pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Three other criminal sexual conduct charges were dismissed because of the plea deal.

According to a court complaint, Collett was acquainted with the girl through a mutual friend. The girl told police Collett said he wanted to date her and was “in love” with her. He also asked the girl to tell her parents he was 17 years old before he met them, according to court documents.

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On Sept. 3, the two stayed overnight at the Holiday Inn together. The girl told police she knew Collett would probably force her to have sex with him, but she went with him to the hotel anyway. She then told police he raped her the first night they stayed at the hotel, but added that she consented to sex with him the next two days.

According to a court complaint, Collett proposed to the girl with an engagement ring when they arrived at the hotel and she agreed to marry him. A few days after that, though, he allegedly broke up with her for another teenage girl.

Collett initially told law enforcement officials he did not have sex with the girl because she is a minor, but when he was interviewed three days later he admitted that he was dating her, knew her age and should not have been having sex with her. He also told police all sexual activity between them was consensual.

Collett is scheduled to be sentenced on August 26.