Idaho Falls man who sexually assaulted a 15-year-old in his Tesla gets a rider
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Editor’s note: This article contains descriptions of sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.
IDAHO FALLS — The two sides of the gallery in a Bonneville County courtroom looked starkly different on Monday, as a 22-year-old Idaho Falls man was sentenced for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in 2025.
On one half of the courtroom sat the victim’s close family, including two parents, a stepmother, a sister, a great-grandmother and two others.
On the other side of the gallery sat well over 40 people who appeared to be in support of Krew Zaugg, who pleaded guilty after being accused of sexually assaulting a minor in his car on May 4, 2025.
Zaugg was initially charged with two felonies, one for rape of a victim under the age of 16 and another for lewd conduct with a child under 16.
The case details were sealed by motion of the prosecutors at the outset, so little is known beyond what was said in court.
RELATED | Idaho Falls man charged with alleged rape of 15-year-old
As part of a plea agreement in June, Zaugg agreed to plead guilty to an amended felony count of battery with the intent to commit a serious felony, in exchange for the prosecution agreeing to drop the lewd conduct charge.
The agreement did not include a recommended sentence from either the defense or prosecution, and was not binding on the court, meaning that District Judge Michael Whyte, who presided over the case, did not have to follow it.
Whyte sentenced Zaugg to a retained jurisdiction, or a “rider” program, where Zaugg will complete a treatment program in prison for up to one year. Once the program is over, Whyte can decide whether to send Zaugg to prison for an underlying sentence of four to 14 years.
Zaugg is also required to register as a sex offender and pay at least $4,000 in court fines and fees. Whyte ordered Zaugg not to have contact with the victim for 14 years.
The victim’s family speaks
The victim, along with four of her close family members, provided letters and statements to the court, outlining how the sexual assault changed her life and caused her heavy trauma.
According to the victim’s sister, whose statement was read by Pam Millhouse, a victim/witness coordinator for the Bonneville County Prosecutor’s office, the 15-year-old victim came into her bedroom in the middle of the night and described how she had been assaulted on the night of May 4.
“Looking at you makes me sick. This is not a young man who made a mistake. This was a deliberate and evil act to feel powerful,” said the sister. “I want you to know that my sister, having the courage to stand up for herself against you in court, makes her more powerful and stronger than you will ever be.”
The victim’s sister told the court that the victim’s grandfather had recently died. Looking for companionship, she says she met Zaugg on Snapchat and told him she was 15 years old. He took her out that night.
“Our grandfather had just passed away, and she was lonely and vulnerable, looking for a friend,” said the sister. “No girl should go out seeking a friend to come home traumatized permanently.”
Next to speak was the victim’s stepmother, who detailed the change she has seen in the victim since surviving the sexual assault.
“Fun experiences for a young girl became things she was too scared to do,” said the stepmother. “She also developed bulimia after what happened to her.”
The stepmother detailed her anger towards Zaugg, describing her thoughts about the fact that he had recently come back from a Latter-day Saint mission when he assaulted the victim.
“What also bothers me is that Krew was a missionary and a member of the LDS church. He devoted part of his life to serving the Lord and representing Christian values,” said the stepmother. “Yet, his actions were the complete opposite of what those values stand for. Being a missionary or a religious man doesn’t make someone a good person, and it shouldn’t excuse what they’ve done.”
The victim’s father spoke next, recounting the hardship he has watched his daughter go through over the past year and a half.
“This type of crime is not victimless,” said the father. “The scars that it causes are lifelong. Even with therapy, which she has had and seen improvement with, the trauma will endure.”
The victim’s mother then spoke, during which Zaugg’s supporters in the gallery seemed shocked by the accusations and statements she made about the brutality of the crime.
“If this had happened to Krew Zaugg, if he was the victim of the brutal and violent rape that my daughter endured, Krew’s parents would be paying the most top-notch attorneys to get the perpetrator sent to life in prison or sent to the firing squad,” said the victim’s mother. “This has caused my daughter to be socially withdrawn and highly hypervigilant (and given her) severe trust issues with any man, and panic attacks.”
According to the victim’s mother, during the attack, the girl was unable to get out of the car because the Tesla’s doors were locked, and she was unfamiliar with that type of car, being that it was a newer model.
“I do not want to repeat all the torturous things he forced upon my child to engage in with him. All I will say is it was brutal, it was violent and highly forceful, which left her with bruises, physical marks and all,” said the mother. “I know the people sitting in this room right now have not seen those pictures, nor do they know much about this case except what they are told by their friends or Krew himself.”
She also indicated that her daughter has been harassed online by Zaugg’s family and friends.
“All of these things caused a ton of severe emotional distress to my daughter,” said the mother. “They know this, and they continue to do it. She can’t seem to get away from it.”
Millhouse then read the last letter to the court, which was written by the victim.
“When we made plans to hang out, I did not expect anything like that to happen that night,” said the victim. “I took it as a chance to get out of the house with a friend because I had not left the house since my grandfather passed.”
The victim detailed the mental and physical anguish she has experienced since the assault.
“I had to sleep on the couch because it was closer to my family. I had to take Benadryl to sleep without waking up panicking,” said the victim. “I am also now a joke to half of this town because of what you did. People are commenting on articles, making literal jokes about a 15-year-old child who got hurt by a grown man.”
Lawyers’ recommendations
The prosecution recommended a prison sentence of four years fixed and 16 years indeterminate, which would be a potential 20-year sentence for Zaugg, stating that he was college-aged and the victim was a freshman in high school.
“At best, this defendant didn’t care if the victim was a minor,” said prosecutor Steven Haderlie. “At worst, he was seeking out a minor.”
According to Haderlie, the victim clearly told Zaugg that she was 15 years old in a Snapchat conversation before they met in person.
“He claims that he thought she was joking about that. But wouldn’t that have been the perfect time, even if he thought she was joking, to say, ‘Haha, actually, how old are you?'” said Haderlie.
Haderlie stated that Zaugg’s sentence needs to create deterrence for others who may choose to have sex with underage children, no matter the age difference.
“At trial, we would have shown that force was involved,” said Haderlie. “Just because someone has done some good things in their life, doesn’t mean that they might not also have made a very terrible choice.”
Michael Winchester, Zaugg’s defense attorney, argued that Zaugg should receive a less severe sentence due to his low likelihood of reoffending and his lack of criminal history.
“We’re not questioning that there is real harm here. That is not in dispute. We are not questioning that the conduct was bad,” said Winchester. “We’re just saying the facts in this case don’t warrant the death penalty, and they don’t warrant a 20-year sentence.”
Winchester noted that while he recommended probation or a rider, he knows those options are not always popular with the public.
“I understand that the public doesn’t understand how these things work very well, and I understand that puts us all in a tough position, especially when we’ve got the news here,” said Winchester. “Krew is not walking away from this unscathed. Publicly, he’s been subject to quite a bit of humiliation.”
Zaugg speaks
According to Zaugg during his statement to the court, on the night of the crime, he had just broken up with his girlfriend and was looking for comfort.
“I was feeling sad, lonely and miserable. Instead of dealing with those things in a mature and responsible way, I made an impulsive decision,” said Zaugg. “I opened up a snap from a girl online without taking the time to really get to know her, asking her questions or understanding her circumstances.”
Zaugg stated that he did not intend to hurt the victim and admitted he initially lied to investigators when he was first arrested.
“Because I was scared, I made another decision I regret. I wasn’t completely honest with the police at the beginning,” said Zaugg. “I should have had the courage to tell the truth right away, regardless of how afraid I was, or what the consequences might be.”
Referring to his future, Zaugg asked the court to “consider the person I’m looking to become.”
“I know I cannot change the past as much as I wish I could go back and make different decisions. I can’t. But I can choose what kind of man I can become,” said Zaugg. “I know that one night of poor decisions does not have to define the rest of my life, but I also know that it is my responsibility to make sure it doesn’t.”
Before pronouncing the sentence, Whyte addressed the allegations of Zaugg’s supporters harassing the victim online.
“Having support that is casting aspersions on the other side is not very supportive. So if you are aware of any of your friends trying to assist you by talking poorly about the victim or the victim’s family, I fully expect you to shut it down,” said Whyte. “The term ‘victim’ is used for a reason. That person was a victim of your actions.”
Whyte also addressed multiple aspects of Zaugg’s story that both lean in his favor and against him when determining the ruling, such as, according to Whyte, Zaugg having the lowest LSI score he had ever seen, at only 3.
An LSI score is derived from an assessment used in the criminal justice system to evaluate someone’s risk of reoffending.
“What you did was horrible. You can’t take it back, you can’t fix it. All you can do is try and make you a better person, and you move forward, and hope that the victim is able to somehow find peace,” Whyte said.