A man from Tse Bonito, New Mexico is facing criminal charges after he allegedly sexually assaulted a minor.

In his plea agreement, Tom Tso, 85, admitted that between Aug. 4, 1998 and Oct. 11, 2000 he committed abusive sexual contact upon a minor under the age of 18. Specifically, he intentionally and directly touched her genitalia, groin, and inner thigh with an intent to gratify his sexual desires.

A federal grand jury issued a superseding indictment against Tso, a member of the Navajo Nation, on May 9.

Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced on Jan. 31 that Tso pled guilty to abusive sexual contact. Tso will remain on conditions of release pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled as of press time.

At sentencing, Tso faces up to three years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.

The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorney Alexander F. Flores is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.