Federal grand jury indictment: Quapaw man sexually abused child and he has done it before

(From the U. S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma)

A federal grand jury returned an indictment this month charging a man from Quapaw with sexually abusing a child under the age of 12, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. The indictment was unsealed Monday.

Wilkie Bill Burtrum, 60, is charged with aggravated sexual abuse of a minor under 12 in Indian Country and with abusive sexual contact with a child under 12 in Indian Country. The indictment alleges that from Aug 2018 to October 2019, Burtrum knowingly touched the child sexually on multiple occasions. At a hearing held today, U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul J. Cleary ordered the defendant to be detained pending trial.

“We’ve made an effort to focus on crimes involving child victims this year, including in Indian Country. Sadly, there seems to be no end to the number of child predators we encounter. But law enforcement and child advocates remain undeterred,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.

“It takes courage for any victim – especially child victims – to come forward to disclose sexual abuse. We are proud to stand with victims to pursue justice in the courtroom to hold accountable their abusers.”

Burtrum was previously convicted of aggravated sexual abuse with children committed within Indian Country in 1993.

The Quapaw Tribal Marshals Service and Miami Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon Cozzoni is prosecuting the case.