Rochester Man Accused of Years of Child Sex Abuse Pleads Guilty

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Rochester man, who was charged a few months ago with repeatedly sexually abusing a young girl, has entered into a plea agreement with Olmsted County prosecutors.

Court records show the criminal complaint was filed against 24-year-old Joshua Brian Shoden in early August. It indicates Rochester police opened an investigation in April after an adult woman disclosed to a family member that she had been sexually assaulted.

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The charges alleged that the victim told Rochester police that Shoden began sexually assaulting her when she was five years old and the sexual abuse continued until around her 17th birthday. He was charged with three counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and a felony count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct.

According to the criminal complaint, Shoden spoke with investigators and stated that the sexual contact between him and the victim began when they were in elementary school. It also states that he told investigators that he could not recall the time frame, but he thought it stopped before he turned 18 years old.

He has now entered into a plea agreement and admitted to the fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct charge in exchange for the dismissal of the second-degree charges. Court records show that a plea agreement recommends a jail sentence not to exceed 30 days if sentencing guidelines call for a presumptive stayed prison sentence.

The court documents reference a presentence investigation determined that his conviction carries a presumptive stayed sentence of 18 months in prison.

His sentencing hearing has been scheduled in March.