Rucker, J.
. . . Thereafter Gomillia entered an agreement with the State in which he agreed to plead guilty to one count of class A felony criminal deviate conduct and class B felony robbery. As a part of the plea agreement the State dismissed the remaining charges. Gomillia also agreed to cooperate with the State in the prosecution of Myles and Carter. Further, the parties agreed the executed portion of the sentence would not exceed forty years.
At the sentencing hearing the trial court took into account, among other things, over twenty letters from friends and relatives written in support of Gomillia. The trial court also heard testimony from Gomillia’s mother, father, aunt and uncle essentially attesting to Gomillia’s good character, strong family support, and that but for his consumption of drugs and alcohol that night these crimes would never have occurred. In imposing sentence the trial court found as mitigating factors that Gomillia accepted responsibility for his crimes, was remorseful, had no prior convictions, and had cooperated with the prosecution. In aggravation the trial court noted “the circumstances of this crime,” Tr. at 60, including the terror Gomillia inspired in the victim. In particular the court observed:
[T]he circumstances of this crime . . . far outweigh the mitigating circumstances in this case. Two young, strong, men force their way into this lady’s house. They change her life forever. They are both armed, and that is an element of the crime, so that basically is not an aggravator. But two strong, young, [sic] men force their way into this lady’s home with a third colleague out in the car who gets worried about the sun coming up and you had better get out of there. The threats to this lady, the terror that you inspired in her, the whole circumstance of this crime, an aggravator that substantially outweigh the mitigators that I find.
Tr. at 60-61. The trial court also noted Gomillia’s leadership role in the events of that night: “[Y]ou basically . . . led this event. You go into that house first. You pick the house. . . . You decide that you want some sex that night and your colleague willingly takes part but you led the whole thing.” Tr. at 61. Concluding that the aggravating factors “substantially outweigh” the mitigating factors, Tr. at 61, the trial court sentenced Gomillia to a term of forty-five years for the criminal deviate conduct conviction with five years suspended; and a term of ten years for the robbery conviction to be served concurrently for a total executed term of forty years.
. . . .
In Pedraza v. State this Court addressed whether certain sentencing scenarios constituted impermissible double enhancement. 887 N.E.2d at 80-81. First, we confronted whether an aggravating factor and a habitual offender status could be based on the same prior conviction. Id. at 80. Noting that under the 2005 statutory scheme trial courts do not “enhance” sentences upon the finding of such aggravators, we declared that “when a trial court uses the same criminal history as an aggravator and as support for a habitual offender finding, it does not constitute impermissible double enhancement of the offender’s sentence.” Id. (emphasis added). Next, and important to our discussion here, we addressed whether a trial court could find the existence of an aggravating factor and elevate a criminal charge based on the same prior conviction. Id. We had this to say:
Another rule established early on in this field provides that a material element of a crime may not also form an aggravating circumstance to support an enhanced sentence. Townsend v. State, 498 N.E.2d 1198, 1201 (Ind. 1986). For the same reasons we stated above, based on the 2005 statutory changes, this is no longer an inappropriate double enhancement.
Pedraza, 887 N.E.2d at 80 (emphasis added). Citing Pedraza in support several panels of the Court of Appeals have taken the position that trial courts are no longer prohibited from considering material elements of an offense when considering aggravating circumstances at sentencing. [Footnote omitted.] We believe this is too broad a reading of Pedraza.
It is certainly the case that under the 2005 statutory scheme “a trial judge may impose any sentence within the statutory range without regard to the existence of aggravating or mitigating factors.” Anglemyer, 868 N.E.2d at 489. Therefore, under this scheme trial courts technically do not “enhance” sentences upon the finding of aggravators; accordingly there is no impermissible double enhancement where the trial court relies on the material element of a crime as an aggravating circumstance. Pedraza, 887 N.E.2d at 80. But there are at least two considerations that have a bearing on this point. First, “if the trial court ‘finds’ the existence of ‘aggravating circumstances or mitigating circumstances’ then the trial court is required to give ‘a statement of the court’s reasons for selecting the sentence that it imposes.’” Anglemyer, 868 N.E.2d at 490 (quoting I.C. § 35-38-1-3). Second, double enhancement aside, the question remains whether the use of a material element of an offense as a reason for the sentence a trial court imposes is “improper as a matter of law.” Id. at 491. We are of the view that in some circumstances it is improper.
Just as with the presumptive sentence under the prior statutory regime, we have consistently said “the advisory sentence [under the current statutory regime] is the starting point the Legislature selected as an appropriate sentence for the crime committed.” Anglemyer, 868 N.E.2d at 494 (emphasis added). [Citations omitted.] And just as with the prior regime, under the current statutory regime the Legislature has determined the appropriate advisory sentence based upon the elements of the offense. Where a trial court’s reason for imposing a sentence greater than the advisory sentence includes material elements of the offense, absent something unique about the circumstances that would justify deviating from the advisory sentence, that reason is “improper as a matter of law.” Anglemyer, 868 N.E.2d at 491. Nothing in Pedraza should be understood to alter this basic premise.
In this case Gomillia contends the trial court abused its sentencing discretion by “using the elements of [Gomillia’s] offenses to aggravate his sentence.” Br. of Appellant at 10. Specifically Gomillia complains about the trial court’s reference to the threats made to the victim and the fear the victim suffered. Id. at 10-11. We make two observations. First “fear” (the trial court actually referred to “the terror” Gomillia inspired in the victim) is not an element of criminal deviate conduct. It is an element of robbery as a class C felony. But here Gomillia pleaded guilty to class B felony robbery; and in any event the trial court imposed the advisory sentence for this offense. Second, we do not read the trial court’s general reference to “[t]he threats to this lady,” Tr. at 61, as necessarily equating to the “threat of force” element in the criminal deviate conduct conviction. As a practical matter the victim was threatened the moment two young men burst into her home wielding weapons and demanding money and jewelry. In any case even assuming the trial court relied upon “threat of force” as an element of the offense, Gomillia is still entitled to no relief. In imposing sentence the trial court declared in part “the circumstances of this crime . . . far outweigh the mitigating circumstances in this case.” Tr. at 60. We have held: “Generally, the nature and circumstances of a crime is a proper aggravating circumstance. Even if the trial court relied on an improper factor under this aggravating circumstance, the sentence may be upheld so long as [t]he remaining components of that aggravator were proper.” McCann v. State, 749 N.E.2d 1116, 1120 (Ind. 2001) (alteration in original) (internal citation and quotations omitted). Here the nature and circumstances of the crime included the trial court’s discussion of the leadership role Gomillia played in the commission of these offenses, as well as the terror the victim suffered. Both are appropriate reasons justifying a sentence greater than the advisory term. In sum, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in imposing Gomillia’s sentence.
Dickson, C.J., and David, Massa and Rush, JJ., concur.