Man convicted of molesting boys won’t be relocated to Menifee

A man who was convicted of sexually assaulting boys and who was considered for relocation from a state hospital to the Sun City neighborhood of Menifee was denied release to the city by a Riverside County Superior Court judge, the Menifee Police Department said.

Lawrence Phillip Moff, 69, was denied release on Friday, July 29, by Judge Matthew Perantoni, the Police Department said in a news release. Moff was convicted in 1978 of molesting two boys, ages 7 and 8, on several occasions in Los Angeles County after befriending their parents at church.

Moff was later convicted of lewd and lascivious acts on a 9-year-old boy in Riverside County in 1997 and was sentenced to 11 years in prison for that offense.

“I am extremely pleased that Lawrence Moff will not be released into our community,” said Menifee Police Chief Ed Varso in a statement. “…Lawrence Moff would have jeopardized the safety of our families and is not welcome here.”

Moff has been at Coalinga State Hospital since being released from prison.

Town halls were held in Menifee to discuss the prospect of relocation.