In 2023, he held his girlfriend captive, assaulted her, and imprisoned her in St. A Granite Falls man accused of waterboarding her in her St. Catherine University dorm room was sentenced to 90 months in prison Monday.

Keanu Avery Labatte, 20, was sentenced to 90 months (7.5 years) in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree criminal sexual conduct. Labatte must also stay away from the victim, who has a Domestic Abuse No Contact Order against him, and register as a sex offender for life.

Court documents show Labatte will receive credit for 16 days of service.

Labatte pleaded guilty in July to one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct in exchange for dismissing four other charges.

According to the criminal complaint, Labatte came to the university in September 2023 to visit his girlfriend of two months. On the night he arrived, he saw texts, images and social media information that “infuriated” him, setting off a harrowing weekend of physical and sexual abuse.

As previously reportedThe victim told investigators Labatte first took her phone. The complaint states that the victim forced himself on Labatte after she told him she did not want to have sex.

Labatte became increasingly violent, strangling the victim until he became dizzy and threatening to kill himself and his family. He also implied that he would hold a knife to the victim’s throat; He told the victim he did this to an ex-girlfriend.

The victim “was so terrified that she laid down next to Labatte and did not move because she was afraid of what he would do to her,” the complaint states.

On Saturday, Labatte allegedly waterboarded the victim by placing her in the bathtub, covering her face with a cloth and pouring water on her. The victim also recalled Labatte threatening her with a knife, “searching for the right vein (in her arm) to cut so deep that no one could save her.”

The woman finally escaped on the morning of September 10, 2023, by convincing Labatte to let her buy food from the dining hall. Labatte gave her back her phone and told her to contact him on Snapchat to make sure he wasn’t trying to escape, the complaint said. Instead, he went to campus security to report the attacks.

When the police came to search the room, they found a folding knife in the backpack and a damp cloth in the bathroom. According to the victim, the bed was moved to the floor so it wouldn’t squeak while Labatte was sexually assaulting her.

Labatte was still in the room at the time and was arrested. He chose to plead Fifth after officers read him his Miranda rights.

During the sexual assault examination, the nurse noted that the victim had bruises on her ear, face and neck and was experiencing severe body pain.

Court records show Labatte was on parole for violating a restraining order against a different woman in Yellow Medicine County at the time of the attack.

If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse, there are a variety of resources that can offer help. For urgent assistance contact:

According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, more than 12 million people are affected by domestic violence each year in the United States alone.

The organizations listed above can help connect victims to resources such as safe shelter, advocacy, legal assistance, and support groups.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline also offers tips for identifying abuse and supporting victims of abuse. CLICK HERE to see these.

Other organizations that can help include:

Minnesota also has a list of many other resources available for crime victims. HERE.