Sex offender charged with child sex crimes in Boone County

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Boone County sex offender was charged with two child sex crimes on Thursday.

William Laurence Pilger Jr., 64, was charged with statutory sodomy of a child younger than 14 years old and second-degree child molestation of a child younger than 12 years old. He is being held at the Boone County Jail without bond. An initial court appearance was set for Thursday afternoon.

Court documents say police spoke with the victim in August, who allegedly said they were sexually assaulted by Pilger several times. Court documents claim the assaults occurred between April 13, 2019-April 12, 2021.

Police interviewed Pilger on Wednesday, court documents say. Pilger allegedly said “he may have” touched the child “but he was just trying to be a ‘friend,’” according to the probable cause statement. The statement also claims that Pilger was working at a location that offered swimming lessons to children.

Pilger pleaded guilty in 1994 to first-degree sexual abuse.