46-Year-Old Gwinnett Man Had Sex With 14-Year-Old

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA — A 46-year-old Gwinnett County man has been found guilty of rape after a jury concluded that he had sex with a 14 year old girl.

Sergio Paul was convicted Wednesday in Gwinnett County Superior Court on charges of statutory rape and enticing a child for indecent purposes. Judge Randy Rich sentenced him to 30 years, with 20 of those years to be served in prison. He also will have to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

On August 18, 2015, the 14-year-old girl was picked up in her apartment complex by Paul, a neighbor of hers, and taken to a hotel in Snellville, where the two had sex. During his trial, she testified that a couple of days before that, she was throwing out trash when Paul approached her and told her she was pretty. The two exchanged phone numbers.

That Tuesday, she agreed to skip school and Paul picked her up in his truck. They went to the La Quinta Inn in Snellville, where the victim said they had sex.

The girl's mother testified that the school called her that day to say her daughter was not in class. She questioned the child for three hours, she said, but the girl claimed to have skipped school with a boy close to her own age. Believing her daughter was lying, the mother called the pastor of their church and asked him to speak with the girl.

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The following Wednesday, the mother and girl went to church and the pastor spoke to the victim. She admitted to having sex, but again said it was with a boy her own age. On Thursday, August 20, 2015, the other decided to take her daughter to the hospital to get examined.

Once they were there, police were called by hospital staff and the girl and mother were questioned. Snellville Police Department officers testified that the girl initially gave them conflicting stories, but eventually told the truth.

Hotel surveillance footage backed up the girl's story, as did Paul's hotel registration card, which he signed.

While he was convicted on two charges, Paul was acquitted on two counts of aggravated child molestation.

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