Bowie County Man Sentenced to 800 Years for Sexual Assault of Child

NEW BOSTON, Texas — A 56-year-old Bowie County man was sentenced to 800 years in prison Friday after a jury found him guilty of 40 counts of sexual assault of a child.

Horace Tyrone Colbert received the maximum 20-year sentence on each count. 202nd District Judge John Tidwell ordered the sentences to run consecutively, resulting in a total sentence of 800 years.

According to the Bowie County District Attorney’s Office, the case involved allegations that Colbert sexually abused multiple girls, including family members, over a period spanning more than two decades.

The case first came to the attention of law enforcement in 2017 after two girls reported allegations against Colbert to the Texarkana Texas Police Department. Video recorded by one of the girls was later presented as evidence during the trial.

The girls were subsequently taken out of the area, and the investigation remained unresolved for several years. In 2024, a detective located both girls, who were then adults, and the case moved forward.

Colbert was initially indicted on two counts of sexual assault of a child. Prosecutors later returned to the grand jury and obtained additional indictments based on the number of alleged offenses.

The District Attorney’s Office said prosecutors attempted to negotiate a plea agreement to spare the victims from having to testify at trial, but Colbert declined the offer.

The jury ultimately convicted Colbert on all 40 counts. The sentences were ordered to run consecutively, meaning Colbert will serve the full 800-year sentence.