RUNAWAY

Missing Actor Turns Himself in After U.S. Marshals Hunt Over Child Sex Abuse Allegations

Timothy Busfield has denied the chilling allegations.

The West Wing star Timothy Busfield, 68, turned himself in to authorities after the U.S. Marshals Service was deployed to find him over child sex abuse charges. Busfield surrendered to authorities in New Mexico on Tuesday, TMZ reported. It came after a warrant was issued for his arrest by Albuquerque authorities on Friday on two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse. New Mexico police and U.S. Marshals then began a search for the actor. A criminal complaint claims two young actors, boys aged 7 and 8, were working on the set of The Cleaning Lady, according to the Associated Press. It alleged the show’s director, Busfield, inappropriately touched them. Both boys stated that Busfield inappropriately touched them, and one of the young boys specified that Busfield touched private areas in various instances over his clothing. The children stated that the alleged abuse took place between 2022 and 2024. Busfield firmly denied the allegations Tuesday, claiming he was ready to “confront these lies.” The Field of Dreams and Thirtysomething star told his lawyer hours before he turned himself in that “I did not do anything to those little boys,” according to recordings released by TMZ. Stanton Stein, a civil lawyer for Busfield, told The New York Times, “He is innocent and is determined to clear his name.” He also explained that his client traveled across the country “to confront these false and deeply troubling allegations” before New Mexico officials.