Piqua man pleads guilty to raping underaged brothers

A Piqua man pleaded guilty to raping a minor under the age of 13, while also being accused of sexually assaulting other juveniles in July of 2022.

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Steven Hilleary, 37, was arrested July 11, 2022, and charged with seven counts of rape and one count of unlawful sexual misconduct with a minor, court records showed.

Hilleary was accused of sexually abusing two brothers, an 8-year-old and a 13-year-old, over a period of time, Piqua Police Deputy Chief Marty Grove said.

Initially, Hilleary pleaded not guilty to all eight counts during his arraignment in the Miami County Common Pleas Court.

However, he changed his not-guilty pleas to guilty for three of the rape charges he faced. The other charges were dropped.

He was also accused of raping one of his jail inmates; however the charge was dismissed.

In the instance that the defendant is required to serve his time consecutively for the crimes he pleaded he committed, he may face 37 and half years to life in prison with an additional maximum fine of $60,000.

He would also be classified as a Tier III sex offender, which stands as the highest level of offender.

Hilleary is scheduled to be sentenced at 9:30 a.m. on July 10, 2023.