A teenager from unincorporated Plainfield appeared in court via video conference Tuesday to plead not guilty to charges that he sexually assaulted a child younger than 13.

Jason Minger, 18, of the 230000 block of West Lynn Street faces a mandatory six- to 30-year sentence if convicted of predatory criminal sexual assault. The teen is also charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a victim younger than 13, a crime that nets a sentence of three to seven years upon conviction.

Joliet police arrested Minger May 26 after investigating claims that he repeatedly sexually assaulted a 12-year-old boy for more than a year.

The child’s parents originally reported the alleged crime to police on May 12.

Cmdr. Brian Benton told Patch Minger voluntarily came in for an interview on May 26 and admitted to assaulting the child.

“He admitted to the sexual assault of not only this victim, but one other victim,” Benton said, adding police were investigating the possibility that more than one child was abused by Minger. As of Tuesday, no additional charges had been filed against the 18-year-old.

Minger is being held at the Will County jail. Bail is set at $25,000. A pretrial hearing is set for July 17 in the case.

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