Metro Coach Pleads Guilty To Sexually Assaulting 13-Year-Old Girls
ANOKA, Minn. (WCCO) -- He stood accused of the kidnappings and sexual assaults of two 13-year-old girls from Andover last September. On Wednesday, Casey Lee Chinn admitted in court that he is guilty as charged and will soon be sentenced for his crimes.
With his victims' families seated in the courtroom, Chinn told Judge Nancy Logering that he knew the girls he targeted for sex were only 13-years-old at the time.
The tragic story began in an Andover neighborhood on Sept. 29, 2014, when the parents of the two girls reported them missing.
Using electronic pings from their cell phones, police soon found them in the basement of a Burnsville home, where 23-year-old Chinn lived with his parents.
"These are obviously young girls and to put them through a trial would have extracted a certain cost on them," said Anoka County Attorney Tony Palumbo. "So you balance the needs of the victims versus the rights of the justice system to go forward."
Chinn pleaded guilty on two counts of kidnapping and criminal sexual contact for the September incident. He told the judge that he met the girls on an online chat website with the clear intention of engaging them in sex.
After arranging to pick the girls up on the evening of Sept. 29, he then drove them to Burnsville, dropping them off near his home and instructing them to enter his parent's home through the basement door.
"He's extremely sorry, remorseful and embarrassed for everyone involved," said defense attorney Marsh Hallberg. "And for what he put everyone else through, especially these two young girls."
Halberg added that his client wanted to spare everyone of a painful trial and the harsh memories it would rekindle.
"I had the clear message from him (Chinn) early on, he wanted to have closure for this case as soon as he could," Halberg said.
Palumbo called the case tragic and made a desperate plea to all parents to be aware of their child's use of the internet.
"The internet is another doorway into the house," he said. "Make sure that it's locked just as much as every other door."
Halberg also revealed that Chin has a brain condition known as Moyamoya syndrome. He has had surgeries on his brain to correct the abnormality, although it is unclear how the disorder affects his judgment.
Under the agreement, he'll likely get 11 years and three months, plus another 10 years on supervised release.
While conviction at trial is never a guarantee, the maximum Chinn could have received upon a guilty verdict would have been 15 years for third degree criminal sexual conduct and 40 years for a kidnapping conviction.
Chinn's sentencing is now scheduled for April 1 in Anoka County District Court.