Glenville man to get 2 years after plea to lesser rape charge

PHOTOGRAPHER: Steven Cook

A Glenville man arrested last year on a high-level rape charge was sentenced Thursday on his guilty plea to a lower-level felony charge that prosecutors said better fit the allegations.

Kurt Wojtowecz, 41, had previously pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree rape, a felony.

He admitted to having sex with a woman without her consent Aug. 5, 2011, at the Pine Ridge Trailer Park on Saratoga Road in Glenville, where he lived at the time.

In return for his plea, Wojtowecz was sentenced Thursday to a total of two years in state prison.

Wojtowecz originally had been charged with first-degree rape, accused of raping her by force. Had he been convicted of that count, he would have faced up to 25 years in state prison.

Prosecutor Tracey Brunecz, though, said that after investigating the case further, the facts better fit under the lower-level third-degree rape count. The lower-level count does not allege the use of force, only that the victim was unable or unwilling to consent.

Brunecz also said that prosecutors spoke with the victim and she was comfortable with the resolution. The victim was not present for Thursday’s sentencing.

Wojtowecz was represented by attorney Kent Gebert, who later called the resolution a reasonable outcome.

Acing Schenectady County Court Judge Richard Giardino noted that Wojtowecz will have to register as a sex offender upon release.

And the judge warned him that another felony conviction could make him eligible for a possible life sentence, as Wojtowecz was previously convicted in connection with a 2002 police chase. In that case, Wojtowecz sped off from an Albany traffic stop on Interstate 90, leading police on a chase through Albany, Colonie, Guilderland, Rotterdam and Schenectady.

Wojtowecz later pleaded guilty in that case to first-degree reckless endangerment and was sentenced to 28 months to seven years in state prison. The chase included a trip through the Crossgates Mall parking lot. Once in Schenectady, Wojtowecz ditched his car at Franklin and Jay streets, fleeing on foot before police caught up with him.