Grandwood Park man asks to withdraw guilty plea in child sexual assault case

A Grandwood Park man filed a formal request Wednesday to withdraw a previous guilty plea for sexually assaulting a 7-year-old girl.

Defense attorney Jed Stone filed the motion to withdraw Nyasha Mbawa's plea deal this year to one count of criminal sexual assault in front of Judge James Booras.

Mbawa, 21, was facing 12 to 30 years in prison at a sentencing hearing set for Wednesday. The hearing was delayed after Stone made the motion to withdraw the plea.

If Booras approves the motion at a Nov. 26 hearing, the plea deal approved April 15 will be rescinded, Mbawa will be recharged by prosecutors, and the two sides will head to trial.

Stone said Mbawa requested the plea be withdrawn after an investigation determined the victim comes from a "family that is deeply troubled and sexualized."

Stone said a sibling of the victim was also charged in juvenile court with sexual abuse. Stone said he attempted to review the case against the sibling, but was denied by Booras.

"I reviewed the different findings of that case with Nyasha, and he asked if we could withdraw the plea and go to trial," Stone said.

Mbawa pleaded guilty to one count of criminal sexual assault April 15 for molesting the victim in 2012, authorities said.

He was charged in July 2013 with 18 varying counts of sexually assaulting two young victims after the mother of one of the victims reported the assault to the Lake County sheriff's office.

All but one of the charges against Mbawa were dropped as part of the plea deal.

If the motion to withdraw the plea is accepted and the case heads to trial, Mbawa could be sentenced to life in prison if found guilty.

He remains held in Lake County jail in lieu of $1 million bail.