An elderly man has been sentenced to state prison for sexually abusing a Middletown Township girl.
John Taylor Hovatter, 83, of Philadelphia, was sentenced by Bucks County Judge Raymond McHugh to two to five years in state prison earlier this month at the Bucks County Justice Center in Doylestown Borough.
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The judge ordered Hovatter to report to the sheriff’s office for prison on July 15, according to a court docket.
Last April, Hovatter was charged with sexually assaulting a girl whose family he knew through church. In court papers, police said the 9-year-old victim said she would often sit next to or on Hovatter’s lap where he would touch her inappropriately.
The man began visiting the Middletown Township family’s home starting in 2015 after meeting at church and eventually came so often he would be left alone to watch TV, police said.
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The sexual abuse was uncovered after the family became annoyed with Hovatter’s frequent visits and called authorities when their 9-year-old daughter reported he had touched her private areas, police said.
Hovatter pleaded guilty in early December to indecent assault on a person less than 13 years old as part of a negotiated deal. He was also ordered to have no contact with the victim or her family.
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