Wilmington man receives 37 years for sexually abusing child

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A Wilmington man will spend nearly four decades in prison for sexually abusing a 9-year-old boy.

According to the New Hanover County District Attorney’s Office, a jury found Kelton “Buck” Lewis, 59, guilty of Statutory Sex Offense, Attempted Statutory Sex Offense, and three counts of Indecent Liberties with a Child.

The abuse happened in the summer of 2018 when Lewis was babysitting the victim.

This isn’t the first time Lewis has been charged with a crime like this, but it is his first conviction.

In 2002, Lewis was charged in New Hanover County with Statutory Sex Offense with a Child under 13, Crimes Against Nature, and Indecent Liberties with a Child.

The defendant was found not guilty after a jury trial of those charges in 2003.

Lewis was also charged with Indecent Liberties with a Child in 2004, but those charges were dismissed when the victim became unavailable to testify.

A judge sentenced Lewis to between 37 and 54 years in prison.

“Kelton Lewis will die in prison,” District Attorney Ben David said in a news release. “This is the only appropriate sentence for a man who has inflicted this amount of harm. Thieves take things, but child molesters steal a childhood.”