BECKLEY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – A McDowell County man facing charges of sexual assault rejected a proposed plea deal Monday morning in Raleigh County Circuit Court, thus ensuring the matter will be revisited at a trial date set for next month.
The case stems from the 2021 arrest of Larry Roberts on eight counts of sexual assault in the third degree. West Virginia State Police reports from the incident indicate that Roberts admitted to police that he had engaged in sexual intercourse with the minor victim involved in the case about eight times. He also confirmed to police that two nude photos discovered on his phone were, in fact, photos of the minor victim in question.
The victim herself informed police that she and the defendant had engaged in sexual intercourse approximately ten times and that she had indeed sent nude photos of herself to Roberts.
A plea hearing was held on Monday morning with regard to the matter before Raleigh County Circuit Judge Darl Poling. The defendant phoned into the meeting due to unavailability.
The plea offered would have seen the defendant charged with third degree sexual assault. This plea was rejected during Monday’s proceedings, leading to the establishment of a trial date of October 18, 2023, with a pretrial date set for 1:30pm on October 2, 2023.
The deadline for the filing of additional motions was set by Judge Poling for September 25, 2023.
