EPHRATA — A Moses Lake man and known member of the Norteño gang was sentenced to 60 months in prison after pleading guilty to raping an unconscious woman in 2018, according to court documents.

Julian Quintero, 38, pleaded guilty in September to third-degree rape after originally being charged with second-degree rape and tampering with a witness.

Moses Lake police were called to Schneirla Street on Nov. 2, 2018, for a report of a fight in progress and that a car had fled the scene. Officers located the vehicle and conducted a high-risk stop, detaining the three occupants, one of whom told officers that she had been raped that morning by Quintero.

The victim, also known by police to be a member of the Norteño gang, had a pellet pistol on her person and was believed to have been attempting to respond to the attack.

“I know it is common in the gang culture to not report crimes to the police, but rather administer ‘street justice’ themselves,” the responding officer wrote in court records.

The victim had reportedly been kicked out of the place where she had been staying and had slept over with Quintero, whom she had known since they were children, according to court documents. After drinking and falling asleep, she woke up to Quintero raping her.

After Quintero was arrested, colleagues of his reportedly confronted the victim and attempted to bribe her to change her story, according to court documents. However, the witness tampering charge against Quintero was later dropped.

Quintero has 12 previous convictions, according to his criminal history, including four violent offenses. In addition to prison time, Quintero will be placed under community custody for 36 months.

Emry Dinman can be reached via email at edinman@columbiabasinherald.com.