PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WMBB) – On Thursday, a local man accused of sexual battery of a teenager was found guilty.
According to State Attorney Larry Basford, 55-year-old Thomas Lamonte Moses of Panama City was found guilty of two counts of Sexual Battery on a Child 12 Years of Age or older but Under 18, and Lewd and Lascivious Molestation.
The six-person jury reached this verdict in about 35 minutes after Chief Prosecutor Mark Graham presented his case on the first and only day of this trial.
According to officials, Judge Timothy Register sentenced Moses to Life in prison on each of the sexual battery charges, plus 15 years for the Lewd and Lascivious Molestation, with each charge running consecutively.
“The victim showed tremendous courage and strength in testifying against her attacker,” Graham said. “Her testimony, along with the work of the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center and Bay County Sheriff’s Office, helped ensure this defendant will never again harm a child.”
The testimony showed that Moses sexually battered the victim over two years from 2020-2022.
