Missing Defendant in Texas Gang Rape Case Found Guilty

Aug. 30, 2012 — -- A defendant who vanished from his Texas gang rape trial has been found guilty of aggravated sexual assault of a child.

Eric McGowen was not present for his conviction today. He took off during a court break on Wednesday and the Liberty County Sheriff's office told ABCNews.com today that they are still looking for him.

McGowen was out of jail on bond during the trial, but after his disappearance Judge Mark Morefield issued an arrest warrant for him and increased the bond from $35,000 to $250,000. Testimony continued without him.

The Liberty County Sheriff's Office told ABCNews.com today that they still have not found McGowen.

McGowen, 20, is one of 20 men accused of repeatedly sexually assualting an 11-year-old Texas girl after he took off on the first day of the trial.

Eric McGowen and 13 other adults are accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting the young girl over a three-month period in 2010. Six juvenile suspects have also been charged.

McGowen was the first defendant to face trial in a Liberty County court.

McGowen disappeared from the courthouse after a tearful testimony from the now 13-year-old victim. Her testimony included the showing of a graphic video of one of the assaults, according to KTRK.

The alleged assaults occurred in Cleveland, Tex., a town about 60 miles northeast of Houston.

The girl testified under a pseudonym since she is a minor and the victim of alleged seuxal assaults.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys did not comment on the disappearance due to a court-issued gag order placed on those involved in the case.

During her one-hour testimony, the victim told the court that she met the suspects on the street and at high school football games, according to KTRK. She told the court about two incidents in the fall of 2010 when she was sexually assualted by McGowen and the other suspects at two houses and an abandoned trailer while people took videos of the assaults.

The girl testified that she was sexually assaulted by more people than she could remember, according to KTRK.

The district attorney asked her, "How many people violated you that day? More than five?" She replied, "Yes, sir."

"More than 10?" he asked. "Yes, sir," she said.

He continued, "More than 20?" The girl paused before replying, "Probably."

She also testified that McGowen assualted her with a beer bottle during the attack.

Prosecutor Joe Warren showed a video and read a written confession in which McGowen admitted to receiving oral sex from the girl, according to the AP. Defense attorney Matthew Poston tried to get the judge to throw out the confessions, saying that police had improperly questioned McGowen, but the judge denied the request.

A jury of seven women and five men was shown photos of the crime scene, including images of a room littered with condom wrappers, undergarments and blood, according to KTRK.

McGowen's defense attorneys argued that none of that evidence could be directly linked to him and said that the video does not show McGowen assaulting the girl.

Eight of the 20 defendants in the case have plead guilty, including all six juvenile defendants, according to The Associated Press.

The two adults who pleaded guilty also testified on Wednesday, according to the AP.

One of them, 22-year-old Isaiah Ross, testified that he saw McGowen sexually assualt the girl with the beer bottle. The other man, 28-year-old Marcus Porchia, told jurors that he saw other people assault the girl, but not McGowen.

Both men were sentenced to 15-year prison terms.