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COLBERT COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — A Florence man charged with sexual abuse of a child is back in the custody of the Colbert County Jail after authorities spent the last year searching for him.
Michael Anthony Netherton, 36, was arrested by Colbert County Sheriff’s Deputies on a warrant on October 1. That warrant was issued on August 25, 2021.
The sheriff’s office announced they were looking for Netherland in September 2021, saying he failed to show up for an August court date.
Sheriff Frank Williamson said Netherton has two grand jury indictments for sexual abuse of a child younger than 12. Those indictments were handed down by a Colbert County Grand Jury in May 2018.
According to the court documents, the alleged sexual abuse happened on January 1, 2011.
Following those indictments, Netherton was arrested on June 6, 2019, but was later released on October 12, 2019 after posting $75,000 bond.
The jury trial has seen multiple changes in attorneys defending the Florence man, along with several delays and continuances.
Netherton and another man were also charged with kidnapping in Russellville in 2015, in what police at the time said began as a joy ride.
Netherton remains in the custody of the Colbert County Sheriff’s Office.
