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Who is Lewis Matthews? Florida man sexually assaulted girl, 10, poured bleach to destroy evidence

Lewis Matthews got life imprisonment for his attack on his girlfriend's daughter who saw him as her stepfather
PUBLISHED JUN 30, 2021
Lewis Matthews sits at his sentencing hearing (Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office)
Lewis Matthews sits at his sentencing hearing (Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office)

TAMPA, FLORIDA: A jury in Hillsborough County, on June 4, found a man guilty of sexually battering and molesting his girlfriend’s ten-year-old daughter — then pouring bleach onto her genitals to try to destroy evidence of the crime. On Monday, June 28, he was sentenced to life in prison by Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Fernandez.

At his sentencing, attorney Bryant Camareno told the judge that the child predator's own mother wasn't planning on showing up for her son's sentencing hearing. "She doesn't want to come," explained Camareno.

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Lewis Matthews' mugshot after he was arrested (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)

Who is Lewis Matthews?

Matthews, 43, was found guilty of four felonies — one count of sexual battery on a victim younger than 12, two counts of lewd or lascivious molestation of a victim younger than 12; and one count of tampering with physical evidence, following a three-day trial.

In April 2019, Matthews, who was reportedly at his girlfriend’s home in Tampa, began sexually assaulting her minor daughter. Prosecutors said Matthews had been like a stepfather to the girl and had dated her mother for years. Around 3.30 am on April 13, 2019, Matthews sexually battered the girl as she slept. Her mother found him and called 911.

Mathews, however, grabbed the child and two other children in the home and drove to a convenience store. According to court documents, Matthews bought a bottle of bleach at the store, then took the victim into a public bathroom where he told her to remove her clothes. Lewis then poured bleach on the child and on her genitals in an attempt to get his DNA off of her body. He then threw the victim’s underwear away in a dumpster.

The bottle of bleach he used to clean DNA evidence (Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office)

Matthews’ attempt to destroy DNA evidence, however, failed. Investigators from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office were able to locate Matthews’ DNA on the bleach-stained underwear, as well as the victim’s body, and other clothing. The child also reportedly told investigators that she was sleeping when he approached her and started molesting her.

Prosecutors argued that Matthews inflicted a lifetime of trauma on an innocent child and her family. “Parents who are sexually abusing kids in their custody — it makes your blood boil,” said Andrew Warren, the state attorney for the 13th Judicial Circuit. “That’s why we’re aggressively prosecuting cases like these. And that’s why these people deserve to spend the rest of their lives in prison.”

“It’s heartbreaking to sit in court and watch a victim, who has been sexually abused by someone who is supposed to be caring for her, testify on the stand,” Warren said. “That’s why I’m so proud of the work that our prosecutors do to hold these offenders accountable, stand up for the victims, and send these predators away for life.”

Matthews was given a life sentence for the battery charge, 25 years for each of the molestation charges and five years for tampering with physical evidence. All sentences will be served concurrently. But he seemed unfazed. A local Fox News affiliate reported that on his way out, he shook his attorney's hand and chuckled.

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