Actor Timothy Busfield surrenders to face child sexual abuse charges in New Mexico | US crime
Actor and director Timothy Busfield surrendered to New Mexico authorities on Tuesday, four days after a warrant was issued for his arrest over allegations of child sexual abuse, according to authorities.
Gilbert Gallegos, a spokesman for the Albuquerque police department, confirmed that Busfield turned himself in to officers following widespread reports that the agency was working with U.S. marshals to search for the Emmy winner.
In a case that attracted attention throughout the US entertainment industry and beyond, Busfield was wanted on three charges: two for sexual intercourse with a minor and one for child abuse.
He made a video statement to the entertainment channel TMZ On Tuesday, he denied allegations of abuse against two teenage boys.
“I’m going to confront these lies; they’re terrible,” Busfield, 68, says in the video. “It’s all lies and I didn’t do anything to those little kids and I’m going to fight it.”
In the sworn police statement summarizing the accusations against Busfield, it was stated that these accusations stemmed from two 11-year-old twin sisters whom he met on the set of the TV series The Cleaning Lady, which he directed and starred in.
The children, identified by the initials SL and VL, claim Busfield touched them inappropriately, according to a police statement first reported by multiple news outlets.
The 12-page police statement alleges that SL said Busfield masked the touching “as a game” on multiple occasions. SL was later diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and would wake up afraid of nightmares “about the director touching her,” the affidavit said.
Police began investigating Busfield in November 2024, when one of the investigators responded to a call from a doctor at the University of New Mexico hospital. A law firm had advised the children’s parents to go there, and their mother reported to child protective services that the abuse attributed to Busfield occurred between November 2022 and the spring of 2024.
The affidavit said Busfield made a statement to police about the allegations against him.
He allegedly claimed that The Cleaning Lady co-star Elodie Yung told him that SL and VL’s mother “wanted revenge for bringing her children back to the show.” He also allegedly claimed that he did not remember “openly tickling the children.” However, according to the affidavit, he also stated that “it wouldn’t be unusual” if he had described the fun work environment on set, and he also allegedly stated that it was “quite likely.”
Albuquerque police Officer Marvin Kirk Brown received the warrant to arrest Busfield at noon Friday.
Busfield said in a video statement to TMZ that he hired an attorney after learning of the charges against him on Friday night. He later said he “got in the car” on Saturday and “drove 2,000 miles” to turn himself over to investigators.
“This is all so wrong,” Busfield says in the clip. “Then hang in there and hopefully I can get out soon and get back to work.”
Busfield’s arrest warrant states that he has previously faced accusations of public sexual assault at least twice.
In 1994, a 17-year-old extra in the movie Little Big League claimed that Busfield served her alcohol and allegedly assaulted her, even though she was underage, the affidavit said. Busfield, one of the film’s stars, filed an extortion lawsuit and settled privately, and was ordered to pay $150,000 in costs after unsuccessfully arguing the case was fabricated, the affidavit said.
Separately, Brown said in an affidavit in 2012 that a 28-year-old woman who claimed Busfield fondled her under her clothes at a Los Angeles movie theater. According to Brown’s affidavit, Busfield claimed he consented but prosecutors refused to pursue the case and that he had no civil case.
Cleaning Lady’s run on Fox ended in 2025 after four seasons. Yung plays a Cambodian doctor who comes to the United States to seek medical treatment for his son, witnesses a mob murder, and becomes a cleaner for organized crime.
Warner Bros produced the show. Brown’s statement states that the studio conducted its own investigation into Busfield but was unable to verify the allegations.
Busfield’s most notable acting credits are The West Wing, Field of Dreams and Thirtysomething. His work on Thirtysomething earned him an Emmy award for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series in 1991.
According to Brown’s affidavit, he is married to actor Melissa Gilbert, who listened as Busfield gave his statement to Albuquerque police via speaker phone about the allegations against him.
Apparently Gilbert had disabled him. Instagram account As of Sunday.
Meanwhile, NBC has shelved an episode of Law & Order: SVU that was scheduled to air Thursday in which Busfield was to guest star as a judge.
Associated Press contributed reporting
