Authorities are actively searching for Timothy Busfield, known for his role in “The West Wing,” who is facing allegations of inappropriate conduct with a minor on a television set.

The 68-year-old Emmy-winning actor is under a warrant for his arrest, charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact with a minor and one count of child abuse during the production of ‘The Cleaning Lady.’

The U.S. Marshals have joined forces with local law enforcement to aid in apprehending Busfield, according to a spokesperson from the Albuquerque Police Department, as reported by the Daily Mail.

Investigations into these claims began in November 2024 after staff at the University of New Mexico Hospital alerted police about two 11-year-old boys potentially being groomed on the set of the show directed by Busfield.

The complaint, filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, outlines that the alleged incidents took place between November 2022 and spring 2024. Consequently, a warrant for Busfield’s arrest has been issued in Bernalillo County, New Mexico.

In a detailed affidavit, an officer described how Busfield allegedly became close to the boys, encouraging them to call him “Uncle Tim.” He and his wife, actress Melissa Gilbert, reportedly bought Christmas gifts for the children, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.

Meanwhile, Busfield would allegedly ‘tickle them on the stomach and legs, despite them not liking the tickling.’ 

The children did not allege sexual touching at the time, but in October 2025 one of the parents reported to Child Protective Services that her child disclosed alleged sexual abuse by Busfield. 

West Wing star Timothy Busfield, 68, is facing two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse

An affidavit details how he and his wife, Melissa Gilbert, allegedly ‘grew closer to the boys’ during their time on set. The celebrity couple is pictured in February 2019

One child actor then claimed that Busfield first touched his ‘private areas’ multiple times on set when he was just seven years old, and the following year, he claimed Busfield touched him inappropriately again several times.

The boy said he was ‘afraid to tell anyone because Tim was the director, and he feared Tim would get mad at him.’ 

The investigation also included interviews with the children’s therapists and doctors, according to the affidavit.

It said that one of the child actors, who told a therapist that Busfield touched his ‘genitalia’ and ‘bottom’ while in a bedroom on the set of the TV show, had issues with bed-wetting, ‘along with other behavior issues,’ was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder and anxiety and suffered from nightmares ‘about the director touching him.’

The complaint also details Warner Bros’ investigation into Busfield’s alleged behavior.

It said the studio received an anonymous tip in February 2025 from the SAG-AFTRA hotline about a December 2024 incident, and started investigating.

The studio has said it did not find any evidence to support the claims. 

But the criminal complaint against Busfield claims he once entered the hair and makeup trailer and ‘kissed a minor male on the face as the minor was getting a haircut.’

Busfield pictured starring as character Danny Concannon on hit TV show The West Wing

When questioned about the allegations, Busfield allegedly claimed the boys’ parents wanted ‘revenge’ on him after their children were not asked back for the show’s final season. Busfield is pictured with Gilbert in June 2023

It also claimed ‘there are pictures of Mr. Busfield “tickling and caressing the head and body of minor boys.”‘

When questioned about the allegations, Busfield allegedly claimed the boys’ parents wanted ‘revenge’ on him after their children were not asked back for the show’s final season. 

He then allegedly told investigators: ‘I don’t remember overtly tickling the boys ever, but it wouldn’t be uncommon for me.’ 

Fox and Warner Bros have since released a statement saying they are cooperating with law enforcement.

‘The health and safety of our cast and crew is always our top priority, especially the safety of minors on our productions,’ the studios said in a joint statement Sunday.

‘We take all allegations of misconduct very seriously and have systems in place to promptly and thoroughly investigate and, when needed, take appropriate action,’ they added.

‘We are aware of the current charges against Mr. Busfield and have been and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement.’ 

Busfield’s wife, Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert, appeared to have deleted her social media accounts following the allegations

Meanwhile, Busfield’s wife, Little House on the Prairie star Gilbert, appeared to have deleted her social media accounts.

As of Monday, a link to her official Instagram account leads to a page featuring the error message: ‘Profile isn’t available. The link may be broken or the profile may have been removed.’ 

But back in November, Gilbert spoke out about child sex abuse on her social media pages.

She responded to Megyn Kelly seemingly downplaying the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein by questioning whether he was even a pedophile by sharing her experience as a teenager filming romantic scenes with a love interest played by Dean Butler, who is nine years older than her.

‘So, I debated posting this but, I feel compelled to share. After seeing many women’s posts with the hashtags #iwasfifteen #imfifteen #iwasachild, I decided to Google search myself at that age and see what came up. And this is some of what I found,’ Gilbert, now 61, wrote in her caption of her Instagram post.

‘And now, at this age, at this time, I am actually nauseated. The girl on vacation in Hawaii with her family, is the same girl who was expected to ‘fall in love with’ and kiss a man on film who was several years older than she was,’ she continued, referring to working with Butler, who is now 69.

‘Through the lens of today, this is shocking. I have no words other than to say , “I WAS A CHILD,”’ Gilbert added. ‘Thank God my mom and Michael and so many others were there to make sure I was safe. Can you imagine if I hadn’t had them all? I am so fortunate (Sort of). Many other young women aren’t.’

‘@Megynkelly you need to be careful with your words,’ Gilbert concluded her post. 

Daily Mail has reached out to Busfield’s representatives and lawyers for comment.