Bemidji man faces child sex abuse charges in five counties

A Bemidji man now faces child sex abuse charges in five North Dakota counties after court documents filed through the North Dakota Court System accused him of abusing a girl for years, beginning in New Rockford when she was 14 and continuing into 2025. Scott Skjerva, 44, was first charged April 16 in Eddy County with a Class AA felony for continuous sexual assault of a child. New felony counts were later filed in Foster and Cass counties, and more charges may be coming in McIntosh and Stutsman counties.

Court papers say Skjerva and the victim met while they worked together at the Bird Dawg Café in New Rockford. One account says she was 13 when they met and 14 at the first alleged sexual encounter. Another says the relationship lasted from 2019 until April 2025.

The alleged abuse is said to have happened in vehicles, hotels, parks, homes, the Bird Dawg Café and at family members’ houses. Local reporting also says Skjerva admitted the encounters happened and that he was married at the time.

The case also reaches into institutions that touched children and families in the New Rockford area. Local coverage says Skjerva had been an assistant coach with the NR-S Archery program as recently as 2023 and co-owned a daycare in New Rockford in 2022. If convicted, he could face life in prison without the possibility of parole, making the allegations a serious public-safety issue for both the New Rockford community and Skjerva’s current home in Bemidji.