New Bloomfield man charged with child molestation in Callaway County

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A New Bloomfield man was charged with first-degree child molestation on Monday.

Benjamin Speaks, 19, is being held at the Callaway County Jail without bond. An initial court appearance is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The probable cause statement says the Callaway County Sheriff’s Office was given a report on Feb. 28 about Speaks possibly sexually assaulting a child in October. The child victim detailed the assault to law enforcement during a March 7 interview, the statement says.

A person described as a witness in court documents told law enforcement of a day in October when the victim and Speaks were alone in a shed, the statement says. Speaks allegedly acknowledged he was alone with the victim, but claimed he did not touch them, the statement says.