By Lisa Pett

Micheal Herbert, 64, pleaded not guilty in Portage County Court on Monday to three counts of sexual assault of a child under 13 years old, three counts of incest and one count of exposing his genitals to a child.

The former Plover man was charged with assaulting a young relative in his home during a family visit in December of 2012. The victim reported the abuse to her mother and said that other incidents occurred in their home state of Missouri.

In interviews with investigators, Herbert admitted to touching the child at least 10 times over a period of three years. He told police “he had struggled with the urges for a long time” and that the incidents occurred while he was babysitting.

Herbert pleaded guilty in Missouri and is currently serving a 10-year sentence there for or assaulting the victim there. If convicted on the new charges, Herbert could face over 100 years in prison.

He is being held in the Portage County Jail on a $500,000 cash bond. His next scheduled court appearance is on October 30th.