Hitterdal Man Facing Charges

A man from Hitterdal has been charged with allegedly having sexual contact with a pre-teenage girl. 36-year-old Anthony James Baumgartner is charged with second degree criminal sexual conduct involving a victim under the age of 13.  The Clay County Sheriff’s Office began investigating in November 2024 after a report from social services about conduct that allegedly happened in 2019 or 2020 in a home in Hitterdal.  Investigators say Baumgartner was in a relationship with the child’s mother and lived in the home.  In a later interview, the child described inappropriate conduct that happened when the two were in a bathtub together.  The child’s mother says her daughter described the incident a year later and said Baumgartner often bathed the child when the mother was at work.  Baumgartner was interviewed by detectives in March of this year.  He admitted sharing baths with the child several times and said there was one incident where the child made physical contact with him.  Baumgartner claims he didn’t intend for it to happen.  Second degree criminal sexual conduct carries a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.