By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post

A 32-year-old Hays man was sentenced to more than 21 years in prison after pleading guilty, for a second time, to having sex with an underage victim.

Andrew Dale Hansen, Hays, was sentenced Monday in Ellis County District Court to 253 months in prison for rape and 34 months for failing to register as a registered sex offender.

Hansen was originally charged with rape — having sexual intercourse with a child under 14 and faced 25 years in prison. In December, Hansen entered into an Alford Plea to rape of a 16-year-old victim and will serve 253 months with the Kansas Department of Corrections.

Under the agreement, the 34-month sentence for failing to register as a registered sex offender will run concurrently.

An Alford Plea means the defendant acknowledges that the charges do not exactly fit what happened, but it allows the court to impose the agreed-upon sentence.

According to Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees, Hansen engaged in sexual activity with the victim in August in Hays just four months after being released from prison for committing a similar crime.

In 2011, Hansen was sentenced to 72 months for having sex with a teenage victim. He was released in April 2017 and was still on post-release supervision.

Under the current, sentence Hansen will be subject to lifetime post release supervision and lifetime registration as a sex offender.