ROGERSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – A man accused of kidnapping his 9-year-old niece from school last year had pleaded guilty in court.
According to a post from WKRN citing WATE, Gary Simpson entered an Alford plea on Monday, meaning he did not admit to his charges and maintained his innocence, but felt he had no chance of a not guilty verdict.
Simpson must serve 100 percent of his sentence.
In addition to aggravated kidnapping, Simpson was also charged with two counts of rape of a child and three counts of aggravated sexual battery.
Simpson checked his niece out of school on May 4, 2016 under false pretenses and an AMBER Alert was issued the following day.
The two were missing for eight days before they were found in a rural part of Hawkins County on May 12.