KOMU
November 13, 2009
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| Authorities arrested Jared Mohler of Columbia on Tuesday. |
LAFAYETTE COUNTY - Authorities arrested a sixth man Thursday night in connection with the ongoing sex crimes investigation in western Missouri.
Officials found Larry Kidd, a 55-year-old Kansas City man, in Jackson County. Authorities accuse Kidd of raping of a child younger than 14, and they call Kidd a friend of the Mohler family, the family at the heart of the controversy. Kidd has now joined the Mohlers in Lafayette County Jail, KSHB-TV in Kansas City reported.
Five other men accused in the case appeared before a Lafayette County judge Thursday for their arraignment.
One of the men, Jared Leroy Mohler, 48, of Columbia, was arrested and charged with one felony count of forcible rape of a child under the age of 12. He was also charged with one felony count of sodomy and two felony counts of the use of a child in a sexual performance.
He is among five members of the same family arrested and charged with sex crimes that authorities say took place between 1988 and 1995.
The others charged were: 77-year-old Burrell Edward Mohler Sr. and 53-year-old Burrell Edward Mohler Jr. of Independence, 47-year-old Roland Neil Mohler of Bates City, and 52-year-old David A. Mohler of Iowa.
Burrell Mohler Sr. is the father of the four other accused men.
Wednesday, authorities began searching a rural 55-acre property south of Bates City for messages left in glass jars over several years by the children who were reportedly abused by the five men. In a press conference, authorities also said they were searching for bodies on the property.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol said one of the victims, a daughter of one of the accused, came forward to investigators in August. Now 26 years old, the woman said she, her four sisters, and brother were all sexually abused as children. Burrell Mohler Jr. fathered all six of the children.
According to court documents, the woman identified eight separate instances in which she was abused, and a ninth in which she was forced to watch her brother being abused.
She said at age 11, she became pregnant and was forced to have an abortion, before the abuse reportedly stopped. The alleged abuse occurred when the woman was between 5 and 11 years old.
The State Highway Patrol said the woman's siblings were cooperating with the investigation.
The Lafayette County Sheriff's Department worked with the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Rural Missouri Major Case Squad, a multi-jurisdictional task force, in making the arrests. The suspects are now in custody at the Lafayette County Jail.
Mohler and two of the other men served as Lay Ministers in Community of Christ.
"Leaders and members of the Community of Christ in the greater Kansas City area are prayerfully upholding those families that are touched by the recent arrests of five members of the Mohler family," said Community of Christ Director of Communications Linda Booth. "The church takes seriously the allegations that have been made and has suspended the priesthood licenses of three lay ministers. Lay ministers are volunteers who do not receive compensation for their service or ministry from the Community of Christ."
A local Community of Christ member called Mohler a gentle soul. She said he volunteered for local community groups and was known as a good samaritan.
Authorities are relying on the public to give more information on victims, including missing persons. If anyone has information about the case, call the Lafayette County Sheriff's office at 660.259.6789 or 816.474.TIPS.
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