FARMINGTON — A Lewiston man pleaded no contest Friday to a misdemeanor charge of criminal restraint. The case involved taking a 15-year-old girl out of state without parental consent and not returning her to her foster parent in June 2012.

Franklin County Justice Michaela Murphy sentenced Charles F. Fontenot, 31, to six months in jail and gave him credit for time served. He has been in jail since his arrest in July 2012.

The state dismissed charges of felony sexual abuse of a minor and another misdemeanor charge of criminal restraint in a plea agreement.

A search was conducted for the teenager, who police said ran away with Fontenot from her foster home in New Sharon on June 10.

At the time, Fontenot was accused of taking the girl to Kentucky. Family members convinced them to come back, and federal marshals met them at a bus stop.

The teen has connections to Lewiston-Auburn area where she lived before she and one of her siblings were placed in a state-recognized foster home in Franklin County.

dperry@sunjournal.com


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