MANCELONA -- Authorities charged a Mancelona Township man with multiple counts of criminal sexual conduct after allegations surfaced in a separate sex crime investigation.
Tony Lee Prentice, 40, is charged with two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct with a person 13 to 15 and two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. Antrim County sheriff's deputies arrested him Wednesday.
Prentice in December allegedly had multiple sexual encounters with a teen male who lived with him in his fifth-wheel trailer, Antrim Detective Sgt. James Janisse said. Janisse wouldn't provide details of the alleged incidents, but described them as "nasty."
"It's a horrible, horrible complaint," he said.
Deputies found out about Prentice's alleged acts as they investigated a complaint against a woman who lived with Prentice, Janisse said. That woman, Terri Lyn Harper, 34, allegedly assaulted the same victim and was charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct in February.
As investigators interviewed the victim for the Harper investigation, he told them about the sexual encounters with Prentice, Janisse said.
Harper previously lived in Kalkaska and lived with Prentice on-and-off for a few months, Janisse said.
Harper in May pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Her sentencing is set for July 14.
Habitual sexual assaults often can be prevented or stopped by alert family members, friends and citizens, Janisse said.
"If you suspect it, you report it. There's no harm in making a (phone call)," he said. "In every complaint, we can see some situation where people looked ... their eyebrows were raised, and nobody said anything."
Prentice's arraignment is set for today.
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