SARASOTA, FL — A man convicted of attempting to sexually abuse a child younger than 12 and other sex crimes was sentenced to more than 65 years in prison, State Attorney Ed Brodsky's office said in a news release.
Larry Wayne Riddle was sentenced to 65.65 years in prison, the maximum allowable under Florida law, on Thursday, following a jury trial at the Sarasota County Courthouse.
He was also designated a sexual predator, the state attorney's office said.
Riddle was convicted of attempted sexual battery by a person over 18 upon a child younger than 12, lewd or lascivious conduct by an adult upon a child younger than 16, and lewd or lascivious exhibition by an adult upon a child younger than 16.
The three-day trial ran from Oct. 12-14.
The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office Special Victims Unit investigated the case.
Riddle was a close family friend of the victim. He stayed with the child and her family at their Sarasota vacation home during spring break.
When alone with the child, he repeatedly asked her to perform sexual acts on him over the course of a week, Brodsky's office said.
On one occasion, Riddle stood between the child and a television, unzipped his pants, exposed himself and again asked her to perform a sexual act, prosecutors said. The child refused his requests, and Riddle told her to keep the encounters secret.
The child later disclosed the abuse to her grandmother and mother. The family, who live in Palm Beach County, initially reported the allegations to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office before the case was referred to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office because the offenses happened in Sarasota County.
Riddle was arrested March 31 and taken to the Sarasota County Jail.
Investigators found that Riddle had three prior convictions for sex offenses against children in Broward County dating to the 1980s and 1990s.
During the trial, one of his prior victims testified that he committed an indecent assault against her when she was a child in the early 1990s, prosecutors said.
Further investigation also uncovered numerous instances of alleged sexual abuse involving children that hadn't been reported.
During sentencing, the child's family described how Riddle had exploited their kindness after they welcomed him into their home. A previous victim and her family also addressed the court about the lasting harm caused by his actions.
"This defendant took advantage of this family's good will and used that opportunity to abuse yet another child. He showed absolutely no remorse for the devastation that he caused in
each victim's life," Assistant State Attorney Lissa MacDonald said in a statement. "Thankfully, the child in this case had the wherewithal to reject his requests. With the support of her family, and the excellent work by members of the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office, Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, and the Child Protection Center, this child not only protected herself but all children by stopping this predator in his tracks. The courage of this child to speak up and confront her abuser was heroic and hopefully brought some peace to his prior victims."
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