SEATTLE — A convicted serial rapist who was mistakenly released from jail has now been sentenced to 16 years in prison for a 2019 attack in South Seattle.
Noel Stepney, 50, was sentenced to 16 years and two months behind bars after a jury convicted him of second-degree rape in June. According to court documents, Stepney approached the victim outside her apartment in December 2019, posing as someone offering to help her move heavy furniture. He went with her to the unit, where he sexually assaulted her. Investigators later identified him through DNA left at the scene.
Under Washington state law, individuals convicted of serious sex crimes are required to remain in custody until they are sentenced. But when Stepney was found guilty, no one filed the order to remand him into jail custody. That oversight meant his original pretrial bail amount — $75,000 — remained active. He posted bond and walked out of the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent…