Alleged serial child sex abuser from Grantsville now faces 24 felonies

TOOELE — A Grantsville man already facing 13 felonies for allegedly abusing at least three children now faces additional charges.

On Friday, Mark Swan, 48, was charged with an additional two counts of rape of a child, object rape of a child, three counts of sodomy on a child, and two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, all first-degree felonies. He was also charged with three counts of sex abuse of a child, a second-degree felony.

In total, Swan now faces 24 felonies in two cases, including a total of seven counts of sodomy on a child, five counts of object rape of a child, two counts of rape of a child, two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, three counts of sex abuse of a child, and three counts of attempted sexual abuse of a child.

The investigation into Swan's alleged extensive years of abuse of multiple children began July 18 when a parent contacted police to report a family acquaintance had inappropriately touched their three children, according to a police probable cause statement for his arrest.

After news of his arrest was reported by the media, additional potential victims stepped forward.

According to the new charges filed Friday, a girl under the age of 14 was interviewed on July 22 and "disclosed that she had been consistently sexually abused for the last two years by the defendant, a family friend who often babysat her at his home when the victim's parents were out of town."

The girl told police that she had been abused so many times that she couldn't recall every incident, according to the charges. Prosecutors even noted in their probable cause affidavit that "the charges represent a fraction of the number times the defendant sexually abused the child victim."

The abuse occurred as recently as the Independence Day weekend, the charges state.

A second boy, under the age of 14, also reported to police that on three of the five occasions he was at Swan's house, Swan touched him inappropriately over his clothing, according to charging documents.

Swan is currently being held in the Tooele County Jail without bail. A bail hearing was scheduled for Tuesday.

from Deseret News https://ift.tt/32OQfdA