Aug. 10, 2026
News release from Transylvania County District Attorney Andrew Murray:
On August 6, 2026 in Transylvania Superior Court, Robert Owen Couvillon of Lake Toxaway, pled guilty to four counts of statutory sex Offense with a person 15 years of age or younger.
In July of 2024, deputies with the Transylvania County Sheriff’s Office received a report that a 16-year-old female juvenile had been sexually abused. The subsequent investigation revealed that Couvillon, 68, routinely physically, mentally, and sexually abused the juvenile between the ages of 13 and 16.
The case was calendared for a special two-week term of Superior Court beginning on August 3, 2026. The first couple of days of the special session were consumed by the State battling several motions filed by the defendant’s attorneys. The State prevailed on all of the motions’ arguments and then proceeded to select and empanel a jury.
On the fourth day of the special trial setting, just prior to the State beginning the actual trial with the testimony of the brave young victim, the defendant surprisingly changed course and elected to plead guilty as charged to all four statutory sex offense charges.
At sentencing, the State requested the maximum punishment allowed by law. After hearing from both sides, the Honorable William T. Stetzer sentenced the defendant to two 192 months minimum, 291 months maximum prison sentences with the remaining counts consolidated. Those sentences were ordered to run consecutively for a total of 32 years minimum, 48 years maximum. Couvillon is also required to register as a sex offender for a period of 30 years upon release.
Assistant District Attorneys R. Talmadge Reeves and Michael VanBuren handled the prosecution and sentencing of these crimes. District Attorney Andrew Murray thanks Detective Adam W. Summey and the rest of the team at the Transylvania County Sheriff’s Office for their professional and thorough investigation.
District Attorney Murray further extends special recognition to the teams at Southmountain Child Advocacy Center, Mission Hospital, Safelight, and the South Carolina Aiken County Sheriff’s Office for their specialized support in various aspects of the case.
“This was a difficult and emotional case for everyone involved. Through hard work and perseverance as a collaborative team, we were thankfully able to attain justice for a vulnerable child,” Murray wrote in the news release. “Protecting the vulnerable is one of our highest duties. By securing a 32-year sentence that ensures this monster will never walk free again, we send an unyielding message to those with depraved hearts that would even consider hurting a child: children’s safety is non-negotiable, their voices matter, and accountability is absolute.”