NEWTON COUNTY – A number of criminal cases have been resolved in Newton County court including the sentencing of a Covington man who was charged with child molestation.

On July 10, Luis Vieryra-Acosta of Covington pled guilty to two counts of child molestation and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Vieryra-Acosta was first arrested in December 2021.

Vieryra-Acosta was sentenced to 20 years with the first eight to be served in prison. He must register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.

Additionally, Christopher Bates entered a guilty plea on charges of aggravated assault, cruelty to children and other firearms charges. Bates reportedly got into an argument over a dog at a local motel before pulling a firearm on minors.

Bates was sentenced to 20 years with four years to serve in prison.

Another case that was resolved on Monday, July 8 was that of Adam Paul. Paul entered a guilty plea on charges including multiple counts of terroristic threats and one count of harassing communications. 

Paul was sentenced to 15 years total, with two of those years in prison.

In a released statement, Newton County District Attorney Randy McGinley thanked both law enforcement and jurors participating in these cases.

“Thank you to all our law enforcement partners. And thank you to all the jurors who appeared for jury service on Monday,” McGinley said.