A Naples man now faces a series of sexual abuse charges for allegedly molesting several young children while babysitting the victims.
In Cumberland County Superior Court on Tuesday, Thomas Hale, 27, of Chaplin Mills Road, pleaded not guilty to a series of charges in regard to four separate cases of alleged sexual abuse. Most of the alleged victims were related to the suspect and between the ages of 4 and 9 at the time of the abuse.
Last fall, a tip from the state Department of Health and Human Services sparked an investigation into the alleged sexual abuse. A 14-year-old female told the department she had been molested and raped repeatedly by Hale between 2000 and 2001.
Hale, her cousin, had been babysitting the young victim at her father’s residence in New Gloucester when the sexual abuse occurred, according to the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department.
At first, the young woman and her mother were reluctant to press charges against the relative until more cases of sexual abuse arose involving Hale.
This March, three other incidents of abuse came to the police’s attention when a 10-year-old male realized he may have been molested by Hale after watching a television show on sexual abuse, said Detective Brian Ackerman of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department.
The mother of the victim then called other families whose children had close contact with the accused. Hale often babysat for these families, and two other young males came forward saying they too had been molested and raped.
After hearing of the charges against Hale, the female victim finally came forward to testify against her cousin in April.
Because the alleged abuse occurred years prior to the police investigation, detectives relied solely on testimony from the victims and interviews with the accused to build their case against Hale.
Last month, a grand jury indicted Hale on multiple counts of gross sexual assault and unlawful sexual contact for the alleged abuse of the young victims.
Hale may face consecutive jail sentences if convicted.
These cases of abuse often arise from information provided by the Department of Health and Human Services, said Capt. Bill Rhoads of the Sheriff’s department, and often the abuser is someone close to the victim.
“We do all the referrals that come from the Department of Health and Human Services. It keeps our detectives extremely busy with abuse cases,” Rhoads said. “Eighty percent to 90 percent of the abusers are known by the victims.”
When it comes to sexual abuse involving family members, the family sometimes denies the offense occurred, he said. But once it becomes evident that a crime did take place, the family feels their trust has been violated and will step forward to press charges, he said.
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