Sugar City man pleads guilty to raping teenager
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REXBURG — A Sugar City man admitted to raping a teenage girl as part of a plea agreement in a Madison County courtroom Monday morning.
Jose Nevarrez-Portillo, 20, was originally charged with forcible sexual penetration by a foreign object and forcible rape for an incident that occurred March 31.
Court documents show a 16-year-old girl and a teenage friend met up with Nevarrez-Portillo and Thor Ware Jr., 20, at Harris Trailer Court on Third South in Sugar City. Ware and Nevarrez-Portillo allegedly forced the girls to have sexual intercourse with them.
As part of the agreement the forcible penetration charge was dropped and forcible rape charge downgraded to statutory rape. Additionally Nevarrez-Portillo agreed to testify against Ware, who is also facing a felony rape charge.
Nevarrez-Portillo told Judge Gregory Moeller he did not know the girl was underage when he had sex with her.
Nevarrez-Portillo was ordered to undergo a pre-sentence investigation along with psychosexual evaluation before he is sentenced.
Madison County Prosecutor Sid Brown will recommend Moeller retain jurisdiction if Nevarrez-Portillo is to testify truthfully against Thor Ware. However, the deal is not binding on the judge, who will have the discretion to sentence the defendant up to life in prison.
Nevarrez-Portillo is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 7.