Massachusetts

Man Pleads Guilty to Kidnapping, Sexually Assaulting Girl From Mass.

A Connecticut man accused of kidnapping a 12-year-old girl from a park in Massachusetts and sexually assaulting her last year has pleaded guilty to the charges.

Prosecutors said 36-year-old Joshua Besaw, of Thompson, encountered the 12-year-old at a park in Webster, Massachusetts and tricked her into getting into his car.

Besaw, who identified himself as "Chuck," then drove her to a wooded area in Thompson where he sexually assaulted her, officials said.

According to court documents, Besaw then drove the girl back to Massachusetts where he released her in an unfamiliar neighborhood and refused to return her cell phone.

The girl was able to borrow a phone from a stranger to contact her parents and they picked her up and brought her to the police station to report the incident.

Officials said Besaw was identified as a suspect after an extensive investigation. On July 10, investigators conducting surveillance of Besaw collected cigarette butts that he had discarded.

Judge Michael Shea scheduled sentencing for June 15 at which point Besaw will face a minimum term of 20 years in prison and a maximum lifetime sentencing.

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