Buffalo Center man sentenced to 30 years in prison on sexual abuse, exploitation charges

BUFFALO CENTER — It’s 30 years in prison for a Buffalo Center man accused of sexual abuse.

36-year-old Brandon Bassett was charged with second-degree sexual abuse, lascivious acts with a child, and sexual exploitation of a minor.

A criminal complaint says a minor female reported a sexual assault to a school employee in October, with the school reporting it to the Department of Human Services. A DHS agent and the officer accompanied the child and the child’s mother to a Child Protective Center interview a week later, where the child reported that she had been assaulted in the early hours of a school day in April.

A separate complaint states that Bassett admitted to authorities during an October 27th interview that he had placed a GPS tracker on his wife’s vehicle, with his wife saying she did not know anything about the tracker.

As part of a plea agreement, Bassett in May entered an Alford plea to charges of third-degree sexual abuse, lascivious acts with a child, and sexual exploitation of a minor, all Class C felonies. With an Alford plea, a person does not admit guilt but acknowledges there is enough evidence for a likely conviction.

District Judge Rustin Davenport on Tuesday agreed with the joint recommendation that Bassett be sentenced to ten years in prison on each charge, with the terms being served consecutively.