GREENFIELD — A 52-year-old Greenfield man has been charged with four counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, accused of molesting two children.
Robert R. Arsenault of Federal St. was arrested on a warrant Monday and pleaded innocent to the charges during his arraignment in Greenfield District Court Tuesday.
The charges come after a 10-year-old female victim reported sexual abuse by a family friend to a trusted adult, according to a police report by Greenfield Police Detective Megan Gilbert. After an investigation by the Northwestern District Attorney Office’s Child Abuse Unit, officials also learned from a 16-year-old who alleged Arsenault had molested her several years ago, according to the report.
Gilbert wrote in her report that a search warrant was also executed at Arsenault’s residence in 2011, during which children’s underwear was located inside his bedroom. Arsenault said he had the only closet in the apartment and the underwear belonged to his ex-fiance’s sister’s children, according to the report.
During an interview at the police department, Arsenault denied ever touching the children or spending time alone with them, according to the report, but provided contradicting statements later in the interview.
He was released on $500 cash bail on the conditions he have no unsupervised contact with any child under 18; not reside, spend overnights or work where there is a child under 18; wear a GPS monitoring device and have no contact with the victims or witnesses named in the case.
Arsenault is due back in court May 4 for a pretrial conference.