Oct 22, 2014 2 min read

A North Bethlehem Township man accused of raping two young girls while babysitting them 13 years ago pleaded no contest to lesser charges Wednesday morning just before his trial was set to begin with two more alleged victims prepared to testify against him.

Curtis Thompson Jr., 30, of 390 Pigeon Creek Road, agreed to plead no contest to felony sex assault and misdemeanor charges of indecent assault and terroristic threats in the deal that was struck while the jury sat for nearly two hours waiting to hear opening arguments.

The state attorney general’s office, which prosecuted case, declined to pursue rape charges in exchange for the agreement. Thompson Jr. and his attorney, Chris Blackwell, declined to comment on the plea deal. Washington County Judge Gary Gilman will sentence Thompson Jan. 30 after he is evaluated.

Thompson was accused of sexually assaulting the two girls in 2001 while babysitting them when they were 5 and 7 at their home in Cokeburg and at another home in Scenery Hill. He threatened to kill the girls if they told anyone about the assaults. However, one of the girls told authorities last year about the assaults and said she had to be hospitalized for depression and suicidal thoughts.

Two other accusers also came forward later, Chief Deputy Attorney General Laura Ditka said, and were prepared to testify during the trial. No charges will be filed in those cases because of the plea agreement, Ditka said. Prosecutors said the two new accusers are related to one of the other victims in the case and the subsequent alleged assaults occurred around the same time frame.

Thompson was arrested by state police in December and charged with multiple counts of rape, sex assault, indecent assault, terroristic threats

The Washington County district attorney’s office passed the case onto the state attorney general because Thompson Jr.’s father, Curtis Thompson, is a district judge in Bentleyville. The elder Thompson and several family members sat near the defendant in Gilman’s courtroom as he waived his right to a trial.

Thompson will remain free on $50,000 unsecured bond until his sentencing hearing in January. He is not permitted any contact with the victims.