Man charged in sex assault at fire camp agrees to plea deal

ruben-hernandez

An Idaho inmate accused of sexually assaulting a woman after he was sent to work at a wildfire base camp in Utah has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor sexual battery.

The woman approved the plea deal so she could avoid having to testify in the case, prosecutor Kevin Daniels said Monday.

28-year-old Ruben Hernandez was charged with felony rape in Utah after the woman reported that he assaulted her on Aug. 29 when she rejected his advances in a remote area about 80 miles south of Salt Lake City.

He was part of a program in which low-level offenders nearing parole are temporarily released to help cook and clean at wildfire base camps supervised by two Idaho correctional officers.

Hernandez had been sent to Utah to work on the Coal Hollow Fire. Like many wildfires, it was managed by a special team of federal and state agencies, so county authorities weren’t aware that Idaho inmates were part of the force of about 200 at the time of the assault.

Hernandez could face up to a year in jail when he is sentenced. (AP)

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