Sixth family member arrested in sex case

LEXINGTON, Mo., Nov. 14 (UPI) -- A sixth member of a Missouri family accused of sexually abusing children for years was arrested Friday at his retirement home in Florida, police said.

Darrel Wayne Mohler, 72, is the brother of the alleged ringleader, Burrell Mohler Sr., 77, The Kansas City Star reported. Burrell Mohler and his four sons were arrested Tuesday.

The Mohlers allegedly raped young girls, forcing them to wear wedding garments while being "married" to older men. Some of the girls were as young as 5, police say.

The investigation was triggered in August by a woman who told police she had been abused by the Mohlers when she was young. Another woman, believed to be the first one's sister, has also come forward.

After Darrell Mohler was arrested when he returned to his home in Silver Spring, Fla., at about 7 p.m., he reportedly told Marion County deputies he had not been in Missouri for more than 20 years.

The five Mohlers who appeared at a bail hearing Thursday are accused of sex crimes against children from 1988 to 1995. They face felony charges, including rape, use of a child in a sexual performance, forcible compulsion and sodomy.

The investigation involves several jurisdictions and stretched as far away as Lamoni, Iowa, where one of the suspects lived, police said.

While the men were living in Independence and Columbia, Mo., and Lamoni, Iowa, the crimes allegedly occurred on the Mohler farm near Bates City, about 30 miles east of Kansas City.