City police arrested a Marathon man Wednesday for sexually attacking a young child dozens of times over the course of a year, according to the Cortland Police Department.
Mitchell L. Padbury, 61, of 35 Mill St., committed sexual acts on a child younger than 13 between the fall of 2014 and the fall of 2015 in Cortland and Binghamton, according to the city department that investigated alongside the Binghamton Police Department.
The investigation began when the child made a statement to a Binghamton detective on April 17th at the Cortland Police Department station, said Lt. Michael Strangeway. Over the next three weeks, officers searched for Padbury in an effort to talk with him, said Strangeway.
Detectives found Padbury on Wednesday in Marathon and he agreed to talk with investigators at the police station at 25 Court St., he said.
“Following his statement, he was charged and arrested,” said Strangeway this afternoon.
Padbury is expected to face charges in Binghamton as well, he added.
“The Binghamton Police Department worked closely with investigators from our department from the very beginning of this investigation,” said Strangeway.
The Binghamton Police Department did not immediately return a request for comment.
The sex acts occurred while the young child was in Padbury’s care, said Strangeway.
Padbury was charged with predatory sexual assault against a child, course of sexual conduct against a child and first-degree incest, felonies. If convicted of predatory sexual assault, Padbury could be sentenced to life in prison, according to state penal law.
At his arraignment this morning in City Court, Padbury was remanded to the Cortland County Correctional Facility. His next court appearance in Cortland County Court is scheduled for June 4.
