Almost a year after report, Manton man, 51, charged with assaulting minors

A 51-year-old Manton resident faces charges involving the sexual assault of children after a nearly yearlong investigation into conduct that is alleged to have started in 2017.

Matthew James Hudson was arraigned Thursday in 84th District Court in Missaukee County on two counts of criminal sexual conduct with a victim under the age of 13, one count of accosting children for immoral purposes and as a habitual offender. A judge set his bond at $50,000 cash/surety.

Michigan State Police say a child told her mother she was abused between January 2017 and August 2018. The mother contacted police and a trooper from the Houghton Lake Post met in August with the mother and the victim in Manton. 

State police from the Cadillac Post along with the Manton Police Department began an investigation and officers say they identified multiple other victims who were interviewed at the Traverse Bay Children's Advocacy Center. 

Police submitted a report to the Missaukee County Prosecutor's Office, which issued an arrest warrant for Hudson on Monday. Deputies from the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office took Hudson into custody Thursday and turned him over to state troopers, who housed him in the Missaukee County jail. 

Hudson's next court appearance is scheduled for June 30. 

hmackay@detroitnews.com