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Stephen Collins Admits To Child Molestation In Exclusive Statement To PEOPLE

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Actor Stephen Collins has released an exclusive statement to PEOPLE Magazine admitting to inappropriate sexual contact with three young girls from 1973 to 1994.

TMZ first broke the story in October when they posted a recording where the 67-year-old actor allegedly confesses to molesting two girls in New York and one in LA.

Collins has remained out of the public eye since the recordings surfaced, but now has decided to address the matter in PEOPLE Magazine, which hits newsstands Friday.

"Forty years ago, I did something terribly wrong that I deeply regret. I have been working to atone for it ever since. I've decided to address these issues publicly because two months ago, various news organizations published a recording made by my then-wife, Faye Grant, during a confidential marriage therapy session in January, 2012. This session was recorded without the therapist's or my knowledge or consent," he told the magazine.

"On the recording, I described events that took place 20, 32, and 40 years ago," Collins continues in the statement. "The publication of the recording has resulted in assumptions and innuendos about what I did that go far beyond what actually occurred. As difficult as this is, I want people to know the truth."

Collins told PEOPLE that he apologized to one of the women, but has not approached the other two.

Collins is perhaps best known for his role on "7th Heaven", which ran for 11 seasons.

The actor is scheduled to sit down with Yahoo's Katie Couric Friday for an interview that will be streamed online.

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