Combs takes plea to serve 20 years for child rape
|
The defendant, John Anthony Combs, 40, entered a best-interest plea this week before Circuit Court Judge Bart Stanley to the charge of child rape. He was ordered to serve 20 years and to remain under supervision for the rest of his life following his release. The 20-year sentence will be served at 100 percent, meaning he will not receive early release through parole. Two additional molestation charges were dropped as part of the plea agreement.
Combs was charged with molesting a 6-year-old girl and a 12-year-old girl in the West Riverside neighborhood where he lived. The incidents both happened in the late 1990s and sparked a widespread investigation with lawmen interviewing scores of potential victims.
However, lawmen had problems identifying any other alleged victims because some of the alleged incidents happened many years ago. Police reported some alleged victims were already adults when they were interviewed and did not want to press charges.
Combs was first implicated in the web of child molestations when officers went to his residence in answer to a suicide call. When they arrived, Combs doused himself in gasoline and attempted to set himself on fire.
Officers prevented the suicide and then found disturbing evidence during a search of his bedroom. The investigators reported finding sexual paraphernalia and journals detailing the molestation of young children. Lawmen are still unsure if the journals were detailing actual events or were works of fiction.
It was during their probe into their findings that lawmen were alerted to the cases of child molestation.