An Athens man has been formally charged with sexually abusing a child under age 12.

Alejandro Ortiz-Perez, 31, of 15107 York Lane, was being held in the Limestone County Jail Thursday with bail set at $20,000, records show. He is accused of sexually abusing a relative when she was 9 and he was 29.

Police and the Limestone County Department of Human Resources had investigated a report of improper touching involving Ortiz-Perez and the girl in May 2014, but the girl would not talk about the incident, Police Chief Floyd Johnson said at the time.

In January, an investigator interviewed the alleged victim at the Children’s Advocacy Center in Athens. Based on the information obtained, investigators Brett Constable and Jonathan Caldwell interviewed Ortiz-Perez and then arrested him on an initial charge of sexual abuse of a child under 12.

The case was recently presented to a Limestone County grand jury, which found adequate evidence to formally charge Ortiz-Perez.

In Alabama, a person convicted of sexual abuse of a child under 12, a Class B felony, can be sentenced to no fewer than two years and no more than 20 years in prison.