A 48-year-old man is accused of sexually assaulting a 3-year-old female relative at his home in the 1200 block of Wilshire Place.

Gary P. Abt was charged Friday in Waukesha County Circuit Court with first-degree sexual assault of a child. If convicted, he faces up to 40 years in prison.

According to the criminal complaint:

The girl’s mother contacted police Tuesday after the 3-year-old girl made a comment about “kissing boobies.” The girl told her mother she heard it from Abt.

The mother reported she questioned her daughter further and her daughter told her she was playing “Sleeping Beauty” with Abt, laying down with him. She told police the girl was watched by Abt in the mornings before the girl went to school. She wasn’t sure what to do about the girl’s comments, so she went over to the house on Wilshire Place.

When they arrived, the young girl made a comment to Abt, saying “remember when I kissed your boobies.” The mother told police Abt had a look of horror.

The mother told police she got advice from a friend about how to handle the situation, then she picked up her daughter from school to ask more details. The girl divulged that she kissed Abt’s “potty area” because it had an “owie” on it.

The girl repeated the statements during a forensic interview with detectives.

Abt was interviewed by a detective, who reported the girl kissed him on the mouth beginning in August 2012. While the girl initiated the kisses, he said, he began to initiate the physical, sexual contact. The man told police he should have stopped the behavior but couldn’t resist it.

The man also admitted to police there were about 20 sexual contacts with the girl, but then later said there were five incidents, adding that he was “excited” during the incidents.