Federal authorities are now assisting in the search for actor and director Timothy Busfield after local police were unable to locate him following the issuance of an arrest warrant tied to allegations of child sexual abuse.
The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) confirmed that the U.S. Marshals Service has joined efforts to find Busfield, 68, after a warrant accused him of engaging in unlawful sexual conduct involving 11-year-old twin boys.
When asked whether Busfield had been located or detained, an APD spokesperson told People, “Not that I am aware.”
According to the arrest warrant, the alleged victims are twin child actors whose identities have not been publicly disclosed. One of the minors reportedly told investigators that the alleged abuse began when he was seven years old.
The claims stem from Busfield’s involvement as a director on the FOX television series The Cleaning Lady, which aired from January 2022 through June 2025.
The investigation reportedly began in November 2024 after a physician at the University of New Mexico Hospital alerted authorities to possible sexual abuse.
The boys’ parents later told police that hospital professionals suggested the children may have been groomed. At that time, however, the case did not meet the threshold required for formal action, according to the warrant.
In October 2025, the children’s mother filed a new police report and contacted Child Protective Services. She stated that both children disclosed sexual abuse by Busfield dating from approximately November 2022 through spring 2024.
Despite those disclosures, she was reportedly informed that authorities could not proceed because physical abuse had not been identified.
During interviews with investigators, Busfield allegedly claimed the parents were upset that their sons had been replaced on the show by a younger actor, according to the warrant. He was later notified by Warner Bros. that the studio was reviewing a complaint connected to the allegations.
Busfield is married to actor Melissa Gilbert, best known for Little House on the Prairie. The couple married in 2013.
Weeks before the arrest warrant became public, Gilbert shared a social media post reflecting on her own childhood experiences in Hollywood and the broader issue of child sexual abuse, though she did not reference the allegations involving her husband.
Busfield has not publicly commented on the case, and the U.S. Marshals Service has not released additional details about the search.
If you suspect or know of child sexual abuse, help is available. You can contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453). The hotline is available 24/7, confidential, and offers assistance in more than 170 languages.