The mayor of Canton, Minn., faces misdemeanor charges of child abuse after admitting to investigators that he struck his 9-year-old son in the face.

In a criminal complaint filed against Joshua Nordsving, 34, authorities in Fillmore County say they were alerted to the alleged abuse in late October by the child's mother, who shares custody of the child with Nordsving.

The woman told investigators that she noticed bruises to the boy's face during an exchange in Chatfield. The boy told his mother that Nordsving had hit him in the face eight times, according to the complaint.

In an interview with investigators, Nordsving said he had been having ongoing behavioral issues with his son. When Nordsving confronted the boy, he said the behavior escalated, leading him to strike the boy in the mouth with the back of his hand. He admitted to investigators that he struck his son too hard.

The boy later told a child protection worker that he is afraid of Nordsving, and is worried that "Nordsving is going to say that it was the child's fault and that the child was in trouble," the complaint says.

Nordsving is due in court on Dec. 30. He is charged with malicious punishment of a child, a gross misdemeanor, along with two counts of domestic assault.

Nordsving was re-elected as mayor of Canton, a town of just under 400 people, in November after running unopposed.