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LAYTON — A 54-year-old man has been booked on four counts of sexual abuse of a child and five counts of sodomy of a child after a year-long sex abuse investigation.
Timothy Butler is behind bars at the Davis County jail, held without bail, following the probable cause statement that claimed Butler sexually assaulted at least one 5-year-old girl.
“They did an interview with Mr. Butler where, post Miranda, he admitted to these sexual crimes against the victim,” said Lt. Shawn Horton of the Layton City Police.
According to the statement, Butler admitted to watching pornography with the victim and sexually abusing her several times roughly five years ago.
“We are very alarmed he was out there for this long, and we are very happy we were able to make an arrest,” Horton said. “We are simply hoping that he stays in jail for as long as possible.
Butler was previously convicted of sex-related crimes. He stated in his confession that “the Bible did not set limits on the age between two partners.”
“During the interview the girl did disclose that there was another girl," Horton said. "She didn’t know exactly who. She was the suspect (who) also disclosed that he had victimized another 6- or 7-year-old.”
The victim moved out of the state, making it difficult for the investigation to move forward, officials indicated. Police have been working to get the accused child abuser locked up for more than a year. It wasn’t until this week, the department said, that the suspect confessed.
“It’s often hard for the victims to come forward,” Horton said. “Without them coming forward, we would have no idea this even occurred. A 10-year-old female at that time had disclosed that she had been sexually abused between the ages of 6 and 7.”
Horton said police believe they now know who the other girl is and are trying to contact her.
If you or anyone you know has been victimized by this man, let police know immediately.
