Wednesday, January 24, 2024

State v. Dectavious Thomas Moore

Decatur, Ga.- A Lithonia man accused of repeatedly sexually abusing three children in his care will likely spend the rest of his life in prison. 

On Friday, Dectavious Thomas Moore, 41, pleaded guilty to three counts of Rape stemming from a series of assaults from July 2017 through May 2018.  Moore was initially indicted on 52 counts including Rape (4), Incest (3), Aggravated Child Molestation (3), Aggravated Sexual Battery (4), Child Molestation (17), Enticing a Child for Indecent Purposes, and Sexual Exploitation of Children (20).  The victims ranged in age from 9 to 13 years old. 

Immediately following his plea, DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Nora Polk sentenced Defendant Moore to Life plus 20 years to serve in confinement.  If Moore is ever granted parole, he will spend the remainder of his life on probation and must register as a sex offender. 

According to the investigation, Defendant Moore not only forced the children to engage in sexual acts with him against their will, but he also directed them to engage in sex with one another or forced them to watch while he engaged in sex acts with the other children present.  Investigators also recovered more than 1,000 explicit photos and videos of the children from Defendant Moore’s phone.

Defendant Moore was well known in the Lithonia apartment complex where he lived after he built a roller coaster for kids in the community.  Investigators learned that Defendant Moore often took children to drive go-karts or do other activities and always had kids at his home. 

The investigation initially began in Newton County after Defendant Moore sent illicit messages and photos to one of the victims through a phone application and told her he was on his way to pick her up for sex.  An adult saw the messages and notified the child’s father who called 911.  Sheriff’s deputies arrested Defendant Moore as soon as he arrived at the victim’s home. 

The case, assigned to the Sexual Exploitation and Crimes Against Children Unit, was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Sharletta Mahone with assistance from Senior Assistant District Attorney Furhawn Shah, District Attorney Investigator Monesha Hughes and Victim Advocate Tess Balles.  Special Agent Elizabeth Bigham with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation lead the initial investigation.