A 40-year-old Oak Harbor man is facing more than a dozen years in prison for sexually assaulting four girls.

Michael Cheatham pleaded guilty in Island County Superior Court March 30 to two counts of child molestation in the first degree, one count of child molestation in the second degree and indecent liberties.

Under the terms of the plea bargain, an additional count of child molestation in the second degree was dismissed and both the defense and prosecution will recommend a “determinate-plus” sentence of 149 months to life in prison. Under the sentence, Cheatham would serve at least 149 months and then a review board would decide whether he should be released.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 2. Since these are sex offenses, the Department of Corrections has to complete a pre-sentence investigation prior to the hearing.

Cheatham was accused of sexually assaulting four girls in 2015 through 2019.

Cheatham admitted to his wife and later to a detective that he had molested two 11-year-old girls during a sleepover at his home. One of the girls described how she struggled against him as he pulled her shirt off and molested her.

Investigators later identified two other minor victims. A 16-year-old girl who had been staying with the family said he got her drunk and then molested her when she passed out.

Cheatham disappeared in June 2021 from the Oak Harbor home he was supposed to be staying at. A judge approved a $100,000 nationwide arrest warrant.

In July, Cheatham was arrested in California and eventually extradited back to Island County.