An Anniston man was sentenced to 198 years in state prison Friday for kidnapping and raping an elderly woman he left bound in his closet, the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office said.

Tony Lamar White, 49, of Anniston, pleaded guilty to burglary, rape, sodomy and kidnapping in Calhoun County Circuit Court on June 11.

The guilty plea was “open,” meaning White did so without a plea deal and spared the elderly victim from having to testify.

White’s victim was reported missing from her home in Choccolocco on July 4, 2022.

Evidence at her home suggested a struggle ensued, the sheriff’s office said.

About six hours after she was reported missing, the victim was found bound in the closet of the Anniston home where White lived.

White fled prior to sheriff’s deputies arrival at the home, sparking a manhunt that ended a day later in Kentucky.

DNA evidence has linked White to multiple, similar crimes involving elderly victims.

Sheriff Matthew Wade applauded the judge’s sentence.

“While no sentence can truly account for the gravity of such a heinous crime, it is the hope of the Sheriff’s Office that Tony White will never again be free in our society,” he said.