Man Says 'Hit Squad' Gang Rapes at Youth Facility Turned Him into a 'Monster.' He Was Just Awarded $10M Settlement: Reports

The New Hampshire attorney general’s office has agreed to a $10 million settlement in the case of a man who was allegedly gang-raped in a stairwell at the state’s youth detention center, per multiple news outlets including CBS News, the AP and local10.com.

Now 41, Gilpatrick alleges that 10 staffers at a Manchester Youth Development Center that he was sent to at the age of 14 carried out sexual or physical abuse including repeated rapes and being choked to the point of being unconscious, as reported by CBS News.

The outlets report that rather than take the case to trial New Hamshire AG offered Gilpatrick the settlement, which is four times the maximum amount available to those who submit claims through the state’s settlement fund for abuse victims. The lawsuit would have been just the second of more than 1,300 similar cases to go to trial, according to the AP and CBS.

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In a 2021 interview with the AP Gilpatrick said that there was “nobody you could go to at YDC to talk to. You were literally stuck in your own thoughts, in your own fear every single day.”

He added, “That place turned us into what we were. I can’t say what I am now because I’m a better person now. But coming out of that place, I was a monster.”

Gilpatrick alleged that two staffers at the center held him down in a stairwell while another raped him and a fourth forced him to perform a sexual act. His allegations resulted in criminal charges against four former staffers who Gilpatrick called a “hit squad” to the outlet.

Two have faced trial so far including Brad Asbury who was sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison after being convicted as an accomplice to aggravated sexual assault, while jurors were deadlocked on whether or not Stephen Murphy was guilty of rape, which lead to a mistrial. Murphy also faces three other trials related to other former residents, according to CBS.

The settlement saves Gilpatrick from another emotionally draining court proceeding where he would need to relive the trauma of what happened to him. According to the AP, he lashed out at defense lawyers at two separate prior criminal trials.

In an interview with the AP, Gilpatrick said he spent decades trying to bury the memories of what had happened to his as a teen.

“Once I was about to accept the fact that it wasn’t my fault and I was able to stop blaming myself, I knew I had to say something,” he testified on Jan. 16, per CBS.

New Hampshire AG didn’t immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for an update or comment on this case.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.