TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— A Sullivan man has been sentenced to 30 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections after being arrested for child molestation in 2022.
According to court documents, Austin Beal of Sullivan has been sentenced to 30 years with 1,444 days served after accepting a plea agreement on March 3 of this year. According to the plea agreement, Beal changed his plea to guilty to a level one felony of child molestation, and the other count was dismissed. Beal will also have to register as a sex offender and will be subject to a no-contact order, as well as be qualified as a serious violent felon.
On September 29, 2022, court documents say Beal was babysitting two children at a Terre Haute home. The victim’s parents told police that Beal often babysat for them; however, on this day, when the parents returned home, their 11-year-old son reported that he had been assaulted. To read our previous coverage on the case with detailed accounts of Beal’s crimes, click here.
