After hearing testimony Monday and deliberating Tuesday for a little more than 11â„2 hours, a Cole County jury found a former school bus driver guilty of statutory sodomy.
William Vaught, 57, Holts Summit, was accused of having sex-related physical contact with a female relative under the age of 14, which she had described as intercourse. The charge did not specify the type of contact.
Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem scheduled Vaught's sentencing for January.
During the trial, Anji Gandhi, Cole County assistant prosecutor, told jurors the victim had been hiding a secret from her friends and family. She said the victim was around 9 when the contact started in May 2008.
Prosecutors filed the charge last year.