Man accused of abusing girls in 'Maidens Group'

Journal
April 16, 2014

http://www.nujournal.com/page/content.detail/id/489771/Man-accused-of-abusing-girls-in--Maidens-Group-.html?isap=1&nav=5031

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A self-professed minister accused of sexually abusing girls who lived in his Minnesota group's camp as part of a "Maidens Group" is facing 59 counts of criminal sexual conduct.

Pine County authorities said Tuesday that an arrest warrant has been issued but they're still looking for 52-year-old Victor Arden Barnard. The sheriff's office says he was last known to be in the Spokane, Wash., area.

The criminal complaint says the two victims were among several girls and young women who lived apart from their families in a camp that Barnard set up near the town of Finlayson, about 90 miles north of Minneapolis.

One woman says Barnard sexually abused her from the ages of 13 to 22. The other alleges he abused her for years starting when she was 12.