Man sentenced to 36 years for 2013 rape at Johnson C. Smith

A Charlotte man will spend at least 36 years in prison for sexually assaulting a woman on the campus of Johnson C. Smith University in 2013.

A Mecklenburg County jury found Frederick Eugene Sullivan, 44, guilty Thursday of second-degree rape, second-degree sex offense, assault on a female and communicating threats. The trial began Aug. 17.

After he’s released, Sullivan must register as a sex offender and participate in satellite-based monitoring for the rest of his life, Judge Hugh Lewis ruled.

Over a couple of months, Sullivan cultivated a relationship with the victim, a Johnson C. Smith University student, buying her an occasional meal and giving other financial help, prosecutors said.

On Oct. 26, 2013, with homecoming activities elsewhere on campus, Sullivan invited the victim to an empty construction trailer, where he worked as a temporary laborer.

When the victim entered the trailer, Sullivan grabbed her by the neck and forced her to engage in sexual acts against her will over four hours, prosecutors said.

During the trial, prosecutors introduced testimony from the victim and three previous victims. The other unrelated assaults occurred in 1998, 2000 and 2011.

Sullivan also was charged in a sexual assault in the same trailer in October 2013.

“After Thursday’s guilty verdict, careful review of the matter and consultation with the victim, prosecutors dismissed charges related to that assault to spare another victim from reliving her attack at trial,” the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

The D.A.’s office “is grateful for the four victims who took the stand to describe the ordeals they suffered at the hands of a violent offender,” the statement said. “Their testimony was critical, and our community is safer thanks to their bravery.”

This story was originally published August 27, 2015 at 2:38 PM with the headline "Man sentenced to 36 years for 2013 rape at Johnson C. Smith."