Whitefish man accused of raping teenager

A Whitefish man is behind bars after allegedly raping a 14-year-old co-worker over the summer.

Shane Wilson, 35, is being held in the Flathead County Detention Center with bail set at $75,000. He faces a single count of sexual intercourse without consent.

Authorities launched an investigation into Wilson on July 13 after the victim’s father learned that his 14-year-old daughter engaged in sexual acts with an adult co-worker, court documents said. During a subsequent interview, the teenager related the encounters, the first allegedly occurring inside Wilson’s van in mid-June. According to the juvenile, the pair were inside the van, parked near their work site in Whitefish, when Wilson began rubbing the girl’s genitals, court documents said.

In a second incident, this time occurring July 10, the two kissed, the teenager performed oral sex on Wilson and then he raped her, court documents said.

The two met several weeks after Memorial Day, the juvenile told authorities. On her first day of work, Wilson asked about her age, she said, according to court documents.

Detectives sat down with Wilson on July 21 and he allegedly acknowledged the two were co-workers and that he was aware of her age. He also admitted to raping the 14-year-old several weeks after they began working together and told detectives it occurred in his van in the employee parking lot.

He subsequently admitted to the early incident, wherein he groped the teen in his van, court documents said.

Owing to the victim’s minor status and the difference in age between the two, Wilson faces between four and more than 100 years behind bars if convicted of sexual intercourse without consent. His arraignment in Flathead County District Court before Judge Robert Allison is scheduled for Oct. 20.

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.