Murphy man arrested for sexual assaults on a child

The following press release has been issued by Cherokee County Sheriff's Office.   All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 

Murphy, NC— Sheriff Derrick Palmer announced the January 9th 2017, arrest of 81-year-old John Frederick Kaufman of Murphy, North Carolina for sexual assaults involving a child.

During the latter part of November 2016, a report was made that Kaufman was suspect in a child sexual assault. Pursuant to that allegation, an investigation was conducted by the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office which culminated in the January 2017 arrest of Kaufman.

Kaufman is currently in custody at the Cherokee County Detention Center under a $100,000 secure bond. Kaufman is scheduled to appear in Cherokee County District Court on January 25, 2017.

Because of the age of the victims and the sensitive nature of the incident, no further information is expected to be released from this office.

​Sheriff Palmer encourages anyone that has information on this crime or any other to report it. To report crime in Cherokee County, you can call the anonymous tip line at 828-837-1344 or email a tip at crime.tips@cherokeecounty-nc.gov or call 911 if you observe a crime in progress. 

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