Denton man accused of raping 5-year-old gets decades in prison for injury to a child

By Sara Coello

The victim, who required several surgeries and a colostomy bag to recover from her injuries, told officials that John Tufts used a Queen Elsa doll to rape her, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

A Denton man accused of raping a 5-year-old girl was found guilty on three counts of injury to a child Wednesday.

John Scott Tufts, 48, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the first count, five years for the second and 28 years for the third, court records show. It was unclear whether the sentences are to be served consecutively or concurrently.

The victim, who required several surgeries and a colostomy bag to recover from her injuries, told officials that Tufts used a Queen Elsa doll to rape her, according to an arrest-warrant affidavit.

In 2016, the child was admitted to a Fort Worth hospital with bruising on her head and torso. A doctor told police the injuries could not have been self-inflicted and appeared to be at various stages of healing.

John Tufts claimed he'd left the girl in the bathtub and found her later injuring herself with the doll. He said he took it from her and put her to bed, according to the affidavit.

He then sent a photo of the bloody doll to his wife, Georgiana Hughes Tufts, who was at work, and asked her what to do, he said.

She told police she didn't check on the child that night but put a menstrual pad in her underwear the next morning to soak up the continued bleeding and scheduled a doctor's appointment for her.

Georgiana Tufts was charged with injury to a child by omission and is awaiting trial.