Navy recruiter sentenced to probation on tampering charge

A Cape Girardeau-area Navy recruiter will spend time on probation for evidence tampering, after he avoided a jury trial for statutory rape in New Madrid County court. Robbie Millsaps, 35, was arrested Sept. 11 on charges of felony statutory rape. The county sheriff's department was contacted after a hotline call to the department of social services.

The teenage girl stated she and a friend inquired about joining the Navy after graduation. Millsaps interviewed the two girls in late August and then drove them to their homes. He then allegedly exchanged text messages with one of them and arranged a meeting at his house, where they had a sexual encounter. He originally pleaded not guilty to the rape count. But in December, he pleaded guilty to a tampering with physical evidence charge instead. New Madrid Circuit Judge Fred Copeland Tuesday sentenced him to four years in prison with a suspended imposition of sentence and placed him on five years of supervised probation.