HALL COUNTY, Ga. — A 61-year-old Dahlonega man has been arrested following a Hall County Sheriff’s Office investigation into allegations that he sexually abused a child over a period of several years.

Ricky Harold Goodell, 61, of Dahlonega, is charged with three felony counts of child molestation. He remains in the Hall County Jail without bond.

According to the Hall County Sheriff’s Office, investigators were first notified of the alleged abuse on April 23, 2026, when the victim, now 18 years old, contacted the agency.

During the investigation, detectives determined that Goodell, who was identified as a family friend of the victim’s grandmother, allegedly had inappropriate sexual contact with the victim on multiple occasions.

Investigators said the abuse allegedly began in 2015 and continued through 2021. The victim was reportedly 9 years old when the first incident occurred.

Authorities said the alleged abuse took place at the victim’s grandmother’s residence just north of Gainesville, where the victim and her mother were living at the time.

Investigators obtained arrest warrants for Goodell on Tuesday, July 28. Deputies with the Hall County Sheriff’s Office Warrant Service arrested him at his residence later that day without incident.

The investigation remains ongoing.