Plea entered in Lake Elmo rape case

Article by: KEVIN GILES , Star Tribune
Updated: June 18, 2009 - 8:59 PM

Accused of raping a 13-year-old girl, the man pleaded guilty to a lesser charge, fourth-degree criminal conduct.

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A Lake Elmo man accused of barricading a 13-year-old girl in his house and raping her has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge in Washington County District Court.

Anthony Edward Peterson, 21, didn't know the girl but contacted her through a mutual acquaintance and persuaded her and one of her girlfriends to ride with him from her residence in the west metro to Lake Elmo, according to the criminal complaint.

Peterson allegedly forced the girl into sex acts in a basement bedroom and barred the door to prevent her escape, the complaint said.

Peterson pleaded guilty last week to fourth-degree criminal conduct, a felony, said Susan Harris, Washington County's first assistant attorney. The plea means Peterson admitted to sexual contact, but the case was reduced from the earlier, and more severe, third-degree criminal sexual conduct charge, she said.

Sentencing was set for Sept. 17.

The victim told police that Peterson initiated text messages to her on April 4. He drove the girl to his house in Lake Elmo, where he forced her into sex, according to the criminal complaint.

She told police she felt "really scared for my life" while Peterson held her captive in the bedroom. She escaped to a nearby retail store in Oakdale when Peterson fell asleep, the complaint said.

The girl told police that Peterson had asked her age while texting and she told him she was 13, the complaint said. The second girl who rode with them to Peterson's house was 12.

Public records show Peterson was convicted in February in Hennepin County of damage to property, a gross misdemeanor. In December, he was convicted in Washington County of felony drug possession.

Peterson remains in custody at the Washington County jail.

Kevin Giles • 612-673-4432