From staff reports
A Butler man has been jailed on charges accusing him of sexually assaulting a five-year-old girl in Venango County.
A criminal complaint filed by Franklin state police says Jacob Michael Whitfield, 28, told police that he accidentally touched the girl over the course of a couple of years. Court documents indicate that a recent incident occurred Sept. 28 in Cornplanter Township.
The complaint says Whitfield also provided a written statement in which he related that he touched the girl inappropriately.
Whitfield was arraigned before district judge Andrew Fish and charged with a felony count of aggravated indecent assault and a misdemeanor count of indecent assault. He was placed in the Venango County jail in lieu of $50,000 bail.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday in Central Court.
