Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Additional charges filed against Neosho pastor

The Joplin Globe reports that the Newton County Prosecuting Attorney's office has filed 10 more charges against Randall Danny Russell, pastor of Acts II Church in Neosho:

The Newton County prosecutor’s office filed five more counts of second-degree statutory sodomy, two counts of first-degree statutory sodomy, two counts of first-degree child molestation and a misdemeanor charge of second-degree child molestation against Randall “Danny” Russell, the 49-year-old pastor of the Acts II Church near Neosho.

Russell already was facing single counts of second-degree statutory rape, second-degree statutory sodomy and child abuse related to a woman who came forward in late April with allegations that Russell began molesting her and taking nude photographs of her in 2003, when she was 16.

Two more alleged victims surfaced after those charges were filed April 30, and a fourth alleged victim was named in court documents filed Tuesday.

Assistant Prosecutor Bill Dobbs said the women, all members or former members of the Acts II Church, describe initial alleged incidents of touching or kissing that would progress to more direct contact and culminated, in the case of the first woman to come forward, with alleged sexual intercourse.

“It’s as though he had a prescribed pattern he would follow as he would groom these girls,” Dobbs said.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Way to go Bill. We really appreciate the great work that you are doing.