PROCTOR, Minn. — A former high school football player from northern Minnesota pleaded guilty Tuesday in a St. Louis County courtroom to sexually assaulting a fellow teammate after a practice last fall.
The 18-year-old's case will stay in juvenile court, based on an agreement made between his defense team and the St. Louis County Attorney's Office, according to NBC station KBJR.
According to court documents, the suspect was 17 at the time of the incident; the victim was a 15-year-old teammate. Court documents say the assault occurred after a practice outside the Proctor High School football locker room on Sept. 7, 2021. According to KBJR, other people held down the victim during the abuse and the victim tried to run away.
The suspect said after the incident, "I did it... I bet you guys didn't think I was going to do it," according to court documents and KBJR.
The incident was reported to Proctor Police a few days later.
The police department investigated for weeks before its findings were turned over to the St. Louis County Attorney's Office to consider charges.
When details initially emerged surrounding the alleged misconduct, the school district chose to cancel the 2021 football season as authorities conducted their investigation. The football team's head coach, Derek Parendo, also took a personal leave of absence for the remainder of the 2021-2022 school year, and will resign from all of his positions within the district effective at the end of this year's term.
No additional charges are being filed against other individuals at this time.
The suspect's next court date is scheduled for Monday, June 20.
KARE 11 does not generally identify juveniles charged with crimes.