Jury Convicts St. Joseph Resident of Rape, Strangulation During Home Assault

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- A Stearns County jury has convicted a St. Joseph man of raping a woman last January while she was asleep.

Jury Convicts Man on Both Criminal Sexual Conduct Charges

The jury convicted 20-year-old Brian Kimithi on one count of 1st-degree criminal sexual conduct by use of force and one count of 3rd-degree criminal sexual conduct with a physically helpless victim.

Victim Said She Awoke to Kimithi Raping Her

According to the charging complaint, the woman said she awoke just after 3:00 a.m. on January 27th with Kimithi on top of her and sexually assaulting her. The victim told police that she tried to push Kimithi away, told him to stop, and tried to yell for help. The woman said Kimithi grabbed her by the throat and began strangling her as he continued to rape her.

Court records allege that when Kimithi stopped, the victim left the room and told another woman about what had happened. The woman then called the police.

Officers arrived to find scratches and bruises on the victim, who also reported pain in her throat and difficulty swallowing.

Police say Kimithi was arrested and admitted to the rape through a Mirandized statement.

Longer Sentence Sought Due to Aggravating Factors

The prosecution will be asking the judge for a longer prison term when he is sentenced on January 8th. The aggravating factors in the case are the particular vulnerability of the victim and the fact that the offense was committed in a location where the victim had an expectation of privacy.