Petteys pleads guilty in child sex ring case

FARMINGTON — A rural Bonne Terre man who pleaded guilty to the sexual abuse of four young women this week showed no remorse for what he had done.

On Wednesday afternoon, Mark A. Petteys, 41, pleaded guilty to second-degree statutory sodomy, use of a child in a sexual performance, incest, felonious restraint, sexual assault and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child in a ritual/ceremony. Following the plea agreement, Circuit Court Judge Kenneth W. Pratte sentenced Mark Petteys to 28 years in prison.

His trial had been scheduled for Jan 24-25.

His wife, Regina Petteys, 40, was already sentenced in September to 20 years in prison for the St. Francois County charges of use of a child in a sexual performance, three counts of endangering the welfare of a child in a ritual/ceremony and three counts of felonious restraint and the Washington County charge of endangering the welfare of a child in a ritual/ceremony.

Mitchell Rose, 43, of St. Louis, is still charged with nine counts of forcible sodomy; three counts of forcible rape; and two counts of use of a child in a sexual performance in Washington County. Rose is charged in St. Francois County with five counts of forcible sodomy-deviate sexual intercourse; two counts of forcible rape; and three counts of felonious restraint.

Before Mark Petteys was formally sentenced Wednesday, one of the victims addressed him.

The teenager told him and the judge how the man’s actions greatly affected her life. She had trusted the man, who was a family member, and he abused her and allowed a family friend to abuse her.

She said in first or second grade, when she asked how babies were made, Mark Petteys popped in a porno to let her watch.

Crying, the girl said things got worse when he introduced Mitchell Rose into their lives. She said Rose, whom the Petteys said was a leader of a gang, soon began sexually abusing her and another girl and Mark Petteys didn’t do anything to stop it.

She said the other girl told her that Mark Petteys told her that Rose needed pleasure and that she should give it to him.

She said what hurt her the most was having to watch her friends hurt and abused worse than she was.

“I had to watch …” she said, adding that she would try to go somewhere else in her mind.

She said she hopes she will be able to move away and go to college. She had hoped the man would get a life sentence, which she knew was the equivalent of 30 years in prison.

The other victims were not present for the sentencing.

When pleading guilty to the charges, Mark Petteys had to describe what he’d done in specific details such as “I allowed a buddy of mine to have some type of sex (with a girl)” and “I made (a girl) stay in the house … so she would be part of the gang.”

He showed no remorse and offered no apology to the victims.

In other cases Wednesday, Brandon Alexander, 28, of Farmington, was sentenced to seven years in prison for violating the probation he received for forgery.

Deanna L. Gibson, 47, of Desloge, entered an Alford plea to second-degree arson and tampering with physical evidence. On Dec. 17, 2010, Desloge police went to a house for a drug investigation.