NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - The former massage therapist charged with sex crimes was officially denied parole by the Tennessee Parole Board, which said that he will not be eligible for parole for another three years.
Mentouri is the subject of an ongoing WSMV4 Investigation, that revealed how women filed complaints with the state and with Metro Nashville Police about Mentouri’s crimes, but he retained his massage license and wasn’t arrested until after our stories aired.
While 19 women told WSMV4 Investigates that Mentouri committed sexual crimes against them, including rape, he ultimately agreed to a plea deal to just six criminal offenses in which the rape charge was dropped.
In the parole hearing earlier this month, Mentouri said he had remorse for his action, repeatedly wiping at his eyes,
“Sorry, just feel a little emotional l, I feel guilt over what I did,” Mentouri said.
Mentouri said while in prison he began to take medication and attended a sheriff’s department program about abuse.
“I just feel a lot of guilt and feel horrible for what I did. I had no right to do that,” Mentouri said.
Mentouri’s statements are a far cry from the jokes he made while being arrested, including claiming he didn’t speak English when WSMV4 Investigates asked him questions.
In other instances, Mentouri told WSMV4 Investigates that a fictional twin brother was responsible for the crimes.
In the hearing, Mentouri’s attorney, Daniel Murphy, said that his client had the potential to change.
“He had everything going for him, but he lost it all given his own bad choices,” Murphy said. “He can’t change what happened in the past, what he did, with these victims, but he can change what goes on in the future.”
After hearing from Mentouri, Peyton Parker and her mother, parole hearing official Mike Orred recommended not only to deny Mentouri parole, but also that he not be eligible for parole for another three years.
When Orred asked Mentouri if he understood his recommendation, Mentouri quietly responded, “Yes, sir.”
When Orred announced his recommendation, Parker, one of Mentouri’s victims, broke down in tears.
“When (Orred) said, I recommend a decline (to the parole request), I was like, ‘Whoa.’ I just let it all out. I had to show (Mentouri) what real tears looked like,” Parker said.
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