Former Trail Of Terror Manager Pleads Guilty To Sexually Assaulting 15-Year-Old Worker
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A Shakopee man faces has pleaded guilty to repeatedly sexually assaulting an employee he managed at a popular Halloween attraction. At the time, the worker was 15 years old.
Bryan Ellinger, who was 24 at the time of the 2013 assaults, was charged with first- and third-degree criminal sexual conduct. He pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct in exchange for the other two counts being dismissed.
He is scheduled to be sentenced in January 2022. The sentencing order indicates Ellinger would be required to undergo a psychosexual evaluation.
According to the original complaint, the victim said while working at Trail of Terror in 2013, she had a crush on her manager, Ellinger, and the two began a "sexual relationship" that lasted two to four months.
The weekend after Halloween 2013, the complaint states, the victim went with Ellinger and several friends to stay the night in a hotel room, where they gave her alcohol and showed her pornography. The victim said she "became so intoxicated she passed out on the bed," and awoke to find Ellinger sexually assaulting her while other people watched. She then passed out again.
When contacted by a detective, Ellinger admitted to a "sexual relationship" with the victim, though he said he did not remember much of the "drunken night" at the hotel.
The detective asked Ellinger why he would give alcohol to a 15-year-old girl, and Ellinger allegedly replied, "Come on, teenagers like to party." The complaint states Ellinger "did not dispute the age or seem surprised."
Ellinger worked at Trail of Terror for 10 years. He has a previous criminal sexual conduct case on his record.