ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. – A Macomb County man faces the possibility of life in prison for raping his longtime friend's 8- or 9-year-old daughter while he was living with the family in 2011, officials said.
Shane Chupa, 46, lived with his longtime friend when the girl was 5 years old in Clinton Township, according to authorities. He moved in with them again when they lived in St. Clair Shores in 2011, prosecutors said.
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The girl was 8 or 9 years old when Chupa took advantage of her in St. Clair Shores, according to authorities.
The girl is now 17 years old, officials said. She told her friend about the encounter when she was 15 and her aunt about it seven years after the incident, officials said.
Chupa was charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct. The first-degree charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, and the second-degree charge carries a maximum charge of 15 years in prison.
After deliberating for about two hours, a jury convicted Chupa of all three rape charges, officials said.
The first-degree convictions mandate that Chupa serves at least 25 years in prison.
"We want to thank the jury for trusting this brave young girl who found the courage to come forward," Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith said. "Sex crimes are often the most challenging in the office. As a prosecutor, you are dealing with the most challenging of circumstances. Our Child Abuse Unit, along with St. Clair Shores PD, did an outstanding job to ensure this defendant is behind bars."