A not guilty plea — entered during a video arraignment — has been entered by a 44-year-old child care provider on multiple counts of child abuse. (File Photo)
By G. T. Houts
Big Bear City, CA – A 44-year-old Big Bear City man who was employed as a child care provider is facing multiple sex abuse charges after allegedly orally copulating a 7-year-old victim.
The man — identified as Mark Curtis Marcum — has entered a not guilty plea to the charges via video from the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga. Bail has been set at $1 million.
During the video arraignment on Monday, M arch 17, Judge Kenneth Barr denied the suspect’s request to be released on his own recognizance and appointed the Public Defender to represent Marcus.
THE CASE
Big Bear Sheriff’s deputies began investigating the allegations of child molestation on Wednesday, March 5. Officers determined the molestation’s had taken place in Big Bear City between August 2013 and February 2014, according to a media advisory.
Big Bear Sheriff’s detectives conducted the investigation and placed Marcus under arrest at 3:20 p.m. on March 13, according to booking documents released by the Sheriff’s Department.
NEXT COURT APPEARANCE
A pre-preliminary hearing will be held for Marcus on Tuesday, March 25, at 8:30 a.m. in Department S-21. A preliminary hearing has also been scheduled for Thursday, March 27, at 8:30 a.m. in the same courtroom.
INFORMATION SOUGHT
Big Bear Sheriff’s Detective Jeremy King is seeking additional information regarding the investigation. He can be contacted at (909) 866-0100.
Information can also be reported anonymously by calling the We-TIP Hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME (27463) or online at WE-TIP. (158)