FARMINGTON – A Rangeley man who pleaded guilty on Monday in district court to a felony count of sexual abuse of a minor and another felony count of unlawful sexual contact was ordered held without bail.

Roy A. White, 40, was indicted in January on two counts each of gross sexual assault and sexual abuse of a minor for an incident that occurred in Rangeley in 1997.

Three of the counts were dropped on Monday as White entered a guilty plea on the one felony count of sexual abuse of a minor, a Class C crime publishable by up to five years in prison. White was also indicted in January in a separate incident with another female on two felony counts of unlawful sexual contact, two misdemeanor counts of procuring liquor for a minor and one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a dependent. Four of those charges were dropped on Monday as well, in exchange for White pleading guilty on the one count of unlawful sexual contact that occurred last summer in Coplin Plantation. He could get up to five years in prison,

The indictments stemmed from last September, when White was arrested by Franklin County Sheriff’s Department sexual assault investigator David St. Laurent after a teenager alleged White had sexual contact with her over the summer.

In a subsequent investigation after the arrest, another alleged victim came forward and revealed that White had sex with her in 1997, and she had submitted as a result of compulsion.

According to Assistant District Attorney Andrew Robinson, seven of the nine charges were dropped to “avoid putting the victims on trial” and so White would enter a guilty plea.

White was ordered by presiding Justice Joseph Jabar to be held without bail until his sentencing, which Robinson said is expected in late June.

White must also undergo an extensive forensic evaluation and have no contact with the victims.

sdepoy@sunjournal.com