Registered sex offender sentenced to life in prison after a violent home invasion in North Texas

DENTON, Texas (KWTX) – The City of Denton Police announced on social media that a suspect in a 2022 home invasion had been sentenced to life in prison.

On Oct. 9, Paul Merritt, 74, was convicted of residential burglary with intent to commit a further offense and failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements on a previous conviction. With this combined conviction, Merritt faces a maximum sentence of life in prison plus 20 years.

According to the department’s Facebook post, a woman reported that a man broke into her home on Nov. 18, 2022, before physically restraining her.

According to FOX 4, the victim was held down for about two hours and was cut by a knife during a struggle. The victim called police after the suspect left with stolen items, including her credit card.

Detectives reviewed security footage from the home and were able to identify the suspect as Merritt, a registered sex offender. According to the Facebook post, Merritt admitted his crimes to officers during a voluntary interview after he was located.

According to the FOX 4 article, Merritt told officers he first saw the victim at an unknown store two months before the attack. Merritt admitted to repeatedly stalking the woman and trying to enter the home on an unknown date before the attack in November 2022.

During the interview, it was also revealed that Merritt lived at a different location than the address provided, thus violating sex offender registration requirements, according to FOX 4.

Merritt was booked into the Denton County Jail on November 19, 2022, on charges of stalking, failure to comply with recordkeeping requirements on prior conviction, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, unlawful restraint and burglary of a dwelling with intent to commit a new crime .

“This is a great example of collective teamwork here at Denton PD,” the Facebook post said. “All facets of our department came together to ensure the suspect was quickly apprehended.”

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