Louisiana man who hid in Florida teen's bedroom closet pleads guilty to having sex with a minor
A Louisiana man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to having sex with a minor who was 15 at the time, in Florida.
Johnathan Rossmoine, 36, was sentenced Wednesday by the Hernando County District Court. He will also receive a 10-year sex offender probation upon his release and will be required to report as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) responded to a call in September 2020 after parents found Rossmoine hiding in their child's bedroom.
Deputies determined that Rossmoine had traveled from Louisiana to Spring Hill, Florida, on several occasions to have sex with the victim. When he was arrested, Rossmoine claimed he had been there for five weeks, police said.
The 15-year-old victim referred to Rossmoine as a "boyfriend," the HCSO posted in an update on Facebook. The pair met through an online chatting app, and the victim had claimed to be 18 before admitting to actually being 15 prior to any meet-up.
PENNSYLVANIA MAN CONFESSES TO 33-YEAR-OLD COLD CASE MURDER AFTER DNA MATCH, POLICE SAY
Rossmoine would hide in the victim’s closet until the victim’s parents went to work, and he had sex with the victim in his van on numerous occasions, according to deputies.
Deputies charged Rossmoine with four counts of lewd and lascivious behavior with a victim between the age of 12 and 16 and one count of obscene communication.
He was held on an initial $25,000 bond but now will serve out his sentence for a sex crime.
