Man pleads guilty in sexual abuse and death of 2-year-old
Published 11:47 am Monday, July 19, 2021
A Mississippi man is scheduled to be sentenced in November after he pleaded guilty last week to federal charges of second-degree murder and aggravated sexual abuse of a child.
Brett K. Hickman, 27, faces up to life in prison on the murder charge and at least 30 years on the aggravated sexual abuse charge, and a $250,000 fine on each count.
Hickman pleaded guilty to both counts June 13 in federal court in Jackson, according to a news release from the acting U.S. attorney for the southern district of Mississippi, Darren LaMarca, and the special agent in charge of the FBI in Mississippi, Michelle Sutphin.
On June 8, 2019, Hickman physically and sexually abused a 2-year-old child who lived at his home in the Tucker Community of the Choctaw Indian Reservation, and that caused the death of the child, according court documents and statements in court.
A federal grand jury indicted Hickman in July 2019. He is scheduled for sentencing Nov. 2 by U.S. District Judge David Bramlette III in Natchez.