OKEECHOBEE -- A Poughkeepsie, N.Y. man found guilty of kidnapping and rape has been sentenced to spend the next 90 years of his life in prison, was designated a sexual predator, and ordered to pay court cost fees in the amount of $1,546.12.

According to Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s (FDLE) website, a sexual predator is an individual who has been convicted of a sexually violent offense as defined in Florida Statute 775.21 (which may include offenses from another jurisdiction) and has a written court order designating the individual a sexual predator; or an individual who is civilly committed under the Florida Jimmy Ryce Sexually Violent Predator Act and has a written court order designating the individual as a sexual predator.



Conrad Thitchener, 49, had been found guilty Dec. 7, on two counts of sexual battery with threat of force and one of kidnapping and was sentenced Thursday, Dec. 21, by 19th Circuit Court Judge, Dan L. Vaughn.

According to the reports Thitchener committed the rape Dec. 23, 2013, in his travel trailer parked at an R.V. resort on U.S. 441 Southeast and later fled to his place of birth in New York State. Thitchener was apprehended May 13, 2014, by the Poughkeepsie Police Department in conjunction with the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Marshal Service Fugitive Task Force, and later returned to Okeechobee for his trial.

The victim of the attack made a statement prior to Thitchener receiving his sentence stating,

“I will continue to grow spiritually, emotionally and mentally to become more of a successful woman. I too hope that my attacker somehow finds the help he deserves. I feel somewhat of a peace of mind now that my voice has been heard.”

Thitchener received 30 years for each of the three counts that he was found guilty of by the six-person Okeechobee jury. Thitchener will receive credit for the 1,319 days he has spent in the Okeechobee County Jail.