According to the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office Chief…

According to the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Derrick O'Meara, who is the Director of the Oneida County Child Advocacy Center, a Utica man has been arrested for having inappropriate contact with an underage female child.

The investigation began in March of 2024, when members of the Advocacy Center were notified that a 13-year-old female child had been subjected to inappropriate contact by an 18-year-old-man named Damerious Thomas. The case was assigned to Sheriff’s Investigator Mark R. Chrysler.

Investigator Chrysler’s investigation revealed that Thomas had subjected the child to several acts of sexual contact while in the City of Utica.

On April 29, 2024, Investigator Chrysler, and Utica Police Investigator Ryan Kelly, arrested Thomas for Sexual Abuse in the 2nd Degree and Endangering the Welfare of a Child, both of which are Class A Misdemeanors.

Thomas was processed at the Utica Police Department and arraigned at Utica City Court where he was remanded to the Oneida County Correctional Facility with bail set at $2,500. Services have been offered to the victim by the Child Advocacy Center and an order of protection was issued on behalf of the child.