7 years for homeless man in statutory rape case

A homeless man who pleaded guilty to second-degree statutory rape and sodomy for an incident that occurred with a teenage girl in Jefferson City has been sentenced to seven years in prison.

Timothy P. Rigby, 51, made his plea before Cole County Judge Jon Beetem, who sentenced Rigby to the maximum prison time possible.

Police said the girl, identified only as H.D.C., told officers she had met a man she knew as "Tim" and they walked together to a place underneath the Missouri River bridge on the south side of the Missouri River.

Once under the bridge, she said, they smoked marijuana and she drank a beer, both supplied by the man. Then, she said, they had consensual sex.

The police statement said the girl identified Rigby in a photo lineup. After he was picked up for questioning, he admitted knowing the victim was only 15 years old.

Citing two controlled substance possession convictions in Ohio, prosecutors charged Rigby as a "persistent" offender, which would raise the possible maximum prison sentence to five to 15 years.