NORFOLK, Va. — A Norfolk man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for sexually abusing his teenage relative on Friday.
In November of 2022, Child Protective Services reported a sexual assault to Norfolk Police Special Crimes Unit detectives.
The victim told police that when she was 13 to 14 years old, 43-year-old Jeffrey Moreno raped her. He had asked the victim to go to the store with her, but instead of doing so, he parked the car in an empty lot and forced her to perform sexual acts and then raped her.
He continued these acts in her bedroom at home in an August 2021 incident.
After his arrest, Moreno confessed to one of the rapes but claimed the victim had come on to him.
Moreno pleaded guilty on May 4 of this year to rape and aggravated sexual battery of a child less than 15 years old. Judge Jerrauld C. Jones accepted his plea.
On Friday, Judge Jones sentenced Moreno to 12 years in prison, with another 18 years suspended on conditions that Mr. Moreno have no contact with the child and that he complete 20 years of good behavior, with a period of supervised probation, and sex offender registration.
“Mr. Moreno victimized a child in his care, betraying her and her family’s trust,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi. “Mr. Moreno’s guilty plea spared the victim the trauma of having to testify to what she suffered at Mr. Moreno’s hands, and the Court’s sentence holds Mr. Moreno accountable.”
