By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

A Chelsea man was arrested by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office on Dec. 1 and charged with felony child sexual abuse and sodomy.

Carlos Enrique Palma, 47, was arrested and booked into the Shelby County Jail on two charges of sexual abuse of a child younger than 12 and a first-degree sodomy charge.

Palma, who lists an address in the 600 block of Salser Lane in Chelsea, allegedly committed sexual abuse of a child younger than 12 and, being 16 years old or older, did “engage in deviate sexual intercourse” with a victim younger than 12 between July 2005 and January 2013, according to court documents.

Palma is being held in jail on a $180,000 bond. Each of Palma’s charges carries a $60,000 bond amount.

According to court documents, the district attorney recommended a bond of $60,000 per Class B felony for the following reasons: The defendant is charged with long-term residential child sexual abuse; the defendant is not a legal resident of the United States; and given the seriousness of the offense, the defendant is a flight risk.

Palma’s bond mandates he have no contact with the victim.

Sexual abuse of a child younger than 12 is a Class B felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison upon conviction.

First-degree sodomy is a Class A felony. If convicted, Palma could face up to life in prison.

A preliminary hearing for Palma is set for Jan. 7, 2016, at 8:30 a.m. in Shelby County District Court.