After nearly one year and seven continuances, sentencing is still pending for Anthony Ray Sunford for his voyeuristic behavior on campus last December. Monday morning at Ogden City Second District Court, prosecutors faced yet another delay when they had to ask for a continuation after being presented with new evidence the morning of sentencing.
On Dec. 31, 2018, Ogden Justice Court charged the former Weber State University student with eight counts of voyeurism. Surveillance video captured Sunford entering the women’s locker room on the second floor of the Wildcat Center for Health Education and Wellness on eight separate occasions between Dec. 12 and Dec. 19.
Sunford is a registered sex offender charged and convicted of attempted rape, both in California and in the military, according to his Weber county file. He was not on parole at the time the alleged crime took place and, therefore, not restricted to where he could or could not go on campus.
However, according to Lt. Mike Davies with WSU Police, they were notified by the state when Sunford informed the Utah Department of Corrections, who is in charge of managing the state’s Sex Offender Registry, that he would be attending WSU.
It is customary for the state to report to local law enforcement agencies regarding registered sex offenders.
The woman who brought the initial incident to WSU Police remains anonymous. “She was aware of her surroundings and reported it,” Davies said.
Defense counsel Randall G Phillips requested a psychological evaluation of the defendant. Sunford was ordered on July 1 to complete a pre-sentence investigation by Professional Probation Services.
Judge Michael S. Junk granted the prosecution’s request for a continuance so that they could have time to review the report before making their sentencing recommendation.
As part of a plea agreement offered to the defendant on July 1, Sunford pled guilty to four of the original eight counts against him, and the city dismissed the other four with prejudice.
Sunford’s new sentencing date is scheduled for Nov. 14 at 10 A.M. in the Ogden City Second Justice Court.
