Man sentenced on two counts of attempted touching of a child for lustful purposes

Bay St. Louis, MS – Forty-two-year-old Matthew Thomas Murphy was convicted this week on two counts of attempted touching of a child for lustful purposes.

Judge Larry Bourgeois presided over the three-day jury trial, which concluded Thursday morning at the Hancock County Courthouse.

After receiving the jury’s verdict, Judge Bourgeois sentenced Murphy to a total of 30 years, with 20 years to serve without the benefit of parole or early release, followed by 10 years of post-release supervision by the Mississippi Department of Corrections.

The jury heard that on September 22, 2012 the Waveland Police Department was dispatched to Buccaneer State Park to a domestic violence complaint.

Upon arrival, the complainant, a friend of the Defendant, reported to police that she returned to the park after running errands and found the Defendant nude with a 3-year-old nude female standing in front of him.

As Waveland officers attempted to apprehend the Defendant, the 3-year old’s sister, who was 6 at the time, disclosed to the complainant that the Defendant was attempting to make them perform oral sex on him.

Investigators with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office contacted Hope Haven Child Advocacy Center and obtained a forensic interview of the children which led to additional disclosures.

Both victims stated that the Defendant attempted to force them to perform oral sex on him, and when they protested, he spanked the 6-year-old sister.

“The victims, now 14 and 17, testified at trial and provided details of the event. CASA’s Courthouse Facility Dog, “Remi,” was present and provided comfort and support to the children during the proceedings,” said ADA Chris Daniel who prosecuted the case with ADA Jeremy Necaise.

The jury also heard that after the Defendant was arrested on this case and posted bond, he fled to Canada, which resulted in a multi-agency international manhunt led by the U.S. Marshal’s Service who eventually located him in Quebec, Canada in 2021.

According to the Marshal’s Service, the Defendant had used five different aliases during his 8 years on the run.

The District Attorney’s Office worked with the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of State to secure the international extradition of the Defendant to stand trial in Hancock County.