LISBON — A man accused of groping a 7-year-old child while she was asleep in November of 2015 offered an Alfred plea to a single third-degree count of gross sexual imposition in Common Pleas Court on Monday after the jury had been selected for his trial.

Charles A. Fuller Sr., 54, formerly of Salineville Road West, Salineville, also pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted failure to notify the sheriff of a change of address, a fourth-degree felony.

Judge Scott Washam immediately sentenced Fuller to five years in prison, which was the amount requested by Assistant County Prosecutor Tammie Riley Jones. As part of the plea agreement, Jones agreed to dismiss a second count of gross sexual imposition involving the same event and not to continue with the prosecution of a 2020 case, another charge of failing to register a change of address.

The jury had been selected on Monday morning in anticipation of a trial regarding the sexual abuse of the child, who Jones said had been sleeping with her sisters, staying at Fuller’s home with family, when the assault occurred. The child told family what had happened the next day. Jones said the child told them “She didn’t like it and her heart was broken.”

Although there was not enough DNA to link Fuller directly to the crime, male DNA was found in the child’s pajamas.

Fuller told Washam he made the decision to offer the Alfred plea after he determined he did not have a defense to offer a jury and the deal being offered was better than the maximum he could have faced if convicted in the case.

Prior to sentencing Fuller said he wanted to apologize to the family of the child and for any harm he had caused any of them, stating he still cared for them.

Besides the five-year prison sentence, Fuller will be required to register as a Tier II sexual offender. Fuller, who is already serving prison time in Pennsylvania where he had a prior conviction, asked if there was any credit for time in both cases. Washam gave both Jones and Fuller’s defense attorney, Paul Conn, time to file motions regarding how much credit he is entitled to for these two cases.