SMITHVILLE — A years-long criminal case that has moved through the courts since early 2020 has reached its conclusion, as Thomas M. Tinoco Jr., 28, of Smithville, was sentenced to 60 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections following his guilty plea this summer.
Tinoco pleaded guilty in mid-July to statutory rape in the first degree and child molestation in the third degree, admitting in court documents that he knowingly engaged in sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 14. The crimes date back several years and were first brought to authorities’ attention after Tinoco’s November 2019 arrest.
On Nov. 26, the court handed down its sentence:
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50 years for first-degree statutory rape
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10 years for third-degree child molestation
The terms will run consecutively, totaling 60 years in state prison. Under Missouri law, individuals convicted of first-degree statutory rape must serve a substantial portion of their sentence before becoming eligible for parole, meaning Tinoco is unlikely to be released for decades—if ever.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors dismissed a third charge of first-degree sodomy, which had also been pending since the case began.
The case spent nearly five years winding through the system, slowed by pandemic-related backlogs, procedural delays, and repeated scheduling shifts. For the victim’s family, the sentencing marks the end of a long and painful legal process.
Some in the community, reacting to both the severity of the crimes and the lengthy timeline of the case, argued that even 60 years was not enough. Several residents expressed the view that Tinoco should have received the death penalty, saying the sentence fails to fully reflect the “irreparable harm” inflicted on the child victim.
Tinoco has been transferred to state custody to begin serving his sentence. No additional hearings or appeals are currently pending.
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