SPRING HILL, Fla. (WFLA) — A Virginia man will spend the next decade behind bars following a battery at a Florida business that ultimately resulted in an elderly woman’s death.

John Anthony Hancock, 42, was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by five years of probation, on Thursday after pleading guilty to manslaughter, according to the State Attorney’s Office.

The charges against Hancock stem back to an incident that was reported on June 15, 2021, at a business on Commercial Way in Spring Hill.

Once deputies with the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office arrived, 84-year-old Theresa Evelyn Bogue informed them that Hancock had struck her with his fist, causing her to fall backward and hit her head.

Officials said the victim’s account was corroborated by a witness. The elderly woman was taken to a local hospital for treatment, where doctors determined she had a brain bleed.

Detectives said the suspect’s identity was unclear at first. However, surveillance footage and a motel transaction ultimately led investigators to believe Hancock had committed the crime.

Hancock traveled back to Virginia after the fight took place, according to the State Attorney’s Office. Local authorities then met up with him at his home and began questioning him.

Detectives said Hancock initially denied being in Florida, but eventually he admitted guilt.

The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office drafted an arrest warrant, and Hancock was extradited back to Florida.

About a year went by before the victim passed away on April 2, 2022. Medical examiners were able to confirm that her cause of death was from complications of blunt trauma inflicted during the June attack.

“The evidence in this case was irrefutable and left no doubt about the defendant’s responsibility for this tragic loss of life,” said Walter Forgie, Fifth Judicial Circuit Chief Assistant State Attorney. “By pleading guilty, the defendant has accepted responsibility for his actions and we hope this brings some measure of closure to the victim’s family.”