Theopulus Gordon could have prevented the death of Eric Robinson last September, but he didn’t.FORT WAYNE – A 45-year-old convicted rapist who has spent about half his life behind bars will go back to prison for violating his probation.
Brian E. Mast pleaded guilty early this month to a misdemeanor charge of criminal trespass. On Tuesday, Allen Superior Judge John Surbeck said that bad behavior was enough to officially revoke Mast’s remaining probation term for a 1989 rape case.
Mast’s court-appointed attorney said Mast has about six months remaining on his probation term, given Indiana’s jail-time credit laws.
Originally, Mast was imprisoned for the 1989 rape of a woman in the 1200 block of Ewing Street. In 2009, the Indiana Court of Appeals overturned the case because of concerns about his mental health at the time of his guilty plea.
He pleaded guilty to rape in December 2010 under terms of a new plea agreement and was sentenced to 25 years in prison and five years of probation. But because Mast received credit for serving out most of the original sentence, he was released from custody almost immediately.
Mast was in and out of the Allen County Jail much of last year for failing to follow Surbeck’s rules, which included attending regular mental-health exams and taking anti-psychotic medication.
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