Actor and director Timothy Busfield has become the focus of a serious child abuse investigation in New Mexico.
Authorities rolled out an arrest warrant after allegations arose that he inappropriately touched two 11-year-old twin boys who were working as child stars on the set of the TV series The Cleaning Lady.
In police interviews, Busfield shared how it was highly likely that he had physical contact with those kids on the set.
He described the environment as very playful and noted that there were no formal rules linked to adults touching minors during the filming process. He even acknowledged things like tickling and picking up kids as part of directing, but denied remembering doing so with the kids involved in these allegations.
The criminal complaint accuses him of touching one kid several times in ways that made them uncomfortable.
One child shared the fears of reporting anything at the time, as he was the director. In a public video, the star denied all the allegations and shared how they were all false and baseless. After being declared missing, he has now surrendered to authorities, and his wife stands by his claims.