Convicted sex abuser gets 35-year sentence

PALMER — A judge gave a man who admitted to sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl over the course of multiple years a 35-year sentence Thursday.

Nathan Eric Olrun Mack, 20, had faced seven counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor, the most serious of the sexual abuse charges, according to court documents. He pleaded guilty to a single consolidated count of first-degree sexual assault of a minor in July, court documents show.

Superior Court Judge Gregory Heath also suspended 10 of those years, meaning an effective sentence of 25 years.

Mack was 19 when he was arrested for abuse reported by an older sister of the victim, according to Frontiersman articles published at the time of his May 2013 arrest. He will be in his early 40s if released at the end of the minimum sentence.

The state had sought 32 years with the minimum five-year suspension required by law. Prosecuting attorney Melissa Wininger-Howard described a pattern of coercion as the years progressed.

“The victim was only 11-years old when the abuse began,” she said. “The victim exhibited all the dynamics of being sexually abused. She was assured that each time was going to be the last time.”

At one point during that two-year span, the victim’s family moved to Fairbanks, giving the victim a temporary reprieve. However, the family eventually returned to the Valley, and the abuse resumed, Wininger-Howard said.

“She had that accommodation that we hear about, where the defendant is telling her that each time is the last time, so she complied, because ‘It’ll be the last time, let’s just get this over with,’” she said. “The victim told the defendant to stop each time.”

Public defender Windy Hannaman said the nature of the offense prevented Mack from seeking many sentencing options.

“Some of it’s precluded just by the nature of his offense,” she said.

Nevertheless, they sought the minimum sentence of 25 years because, when confronted with his crimes, he had cooperated with investigators, Hannaman agued. In addition, Mack had earned three certificates for self-improvement, and a doctor’s evaluation included in the confidential presentencing report indicated that Mack would likely respond well to treatment, Hannaman said.

“Rehabilitation should be the primary goal,” she said.

Mack apologized for his crimes.

“I would just like to apologize for what I’ve done,” he said. “I feel humiliated for what I’ve done … it’s just … it’s terrible. I’m hoping while I’m incarcerated, I get treatment.”

Ultimately, Heath imposed the minimum sentence.

“These type of cases, the sexual abuse of children, are the some of the most serious cases that the court gets,” he said. “They are life-changers. The victim in this case, a young lady, will have a life-long situation that she will have deal with and hopefully she’ll be victorious, but she was robbed of her childhood.”

Mack has been in custody on $100,000 bail and court-appointed third-party custody requirements. He remained in Goose Creek Correctional Facility Thursday, though he has agreed to a potential transfer to facilities equipped to provide sex offender treatment programs.

Contact Brian O’Connor at 352-2269 or brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.