Teen's Great Uncle Sentenced to Life in Prison for Her 2012 Murder

The great-uncle of a Greenville teen found dead in a trunk several days after she disappeared in 2012 has been found guilty and sentenced to life without parole.

Michael Vincent Moore was indicted on capital murder charges in the 16-year-old's death in July 2013.

A jury found Moore guilty on Friday. Since prosecutors were not pursuing the death penalty in the case, Moore was automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Alicia Moore was last seen getting off her school bus near her home on Nov. 2. Her body was found four days later in a tool trunk along a highway in rural Van Zandt County.

Police said DNA found on the girls' body matched her uncle's, leading to his arrest.

Members of the Moore family were shocked to learn of his arrest and said he was with the family who went to view the teen's body before the memorial.

"It's not like he's been a distant uncle, never been there for her," said Jessica Byrd, the girl's aunt, in 2013. "He's been there since she was little."

Byrd said in 2013 she was still not convinced her uncle killed her niece. But she said that if he did, he is still a part of the family.

"I love him, and I'm not the one to judge him," she said. "He'll have to deal with the man upstairs for that."

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