Arizona teen faces 147 years in prison for multiple sexual-assault counts
May 8, 2014, 7:18 AM | Updated: 1:12 pm
An 18-year-old Arizona man accused of multiple sexual assaults of nearly a dozen girls, faces a minimum 147 years in prison if convicted.
Charges announced in Florence on Thursday against Tyler Kost of San Tan Valley included counts of sexual assault, sexual conduct with a minor, child molestation and sexual abuse of 11 girls in age ranging from 12 to 17.
The time frame for the crimes was October 2009 to April 2014, the Pinal County Attorney’s Office said.
Kost could be imprisoned for up to 334 years if found guilty on all counts.
County Attorney Lando Voyles encouraged parents of sexual assault victims
to report the crimes to authorities.
“Let your children know that we start by believing,” he said.
Kost was arrested by Pinal County sheriff’s deputies last week.
According to the indictment, none of the alleged sexual assaults occurred on a school campus. Kost, who until recently attended Poston Butee High School, is accused of sexually abusing the girls in his bedroom, in a parked car, a park and out in the desert.
Kost’s attorney, Christine Whalin, did not immediately respond to requests for
comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
