KEARNS — A Kearns man is facing 35 first-degree felony charges accusing him of sexually abusing two young girls over a couple of years and filming the abuse.
The man, 40, was charged Wednesday in 3rd District Court with nine counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, six counts of sodomy on a child, 13 counts of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, three counts of object rape of a child, two counts of rape of a child and forcible sodomy.
KSL is not naming the man to protect the identities of the victims, who are 13 and 10.
The alleged abuse dates back to 2024 and was ongoing until the day of his arrest, police say.
The man would have his stepdaughter and another relative "take baths together while he photographed and recorded them" and also required them "to wear bikinis and lingerie for photos and videos," according to charging documents.
When police served a search warrant on the man's home in April, he was caught in the process of abusing one of the girls and recording it on his phone, the charges state.
"He was not cooperative and officers used a nonlethal round to gain compliance," prosecutors say in court documents.
"Through a forensic analysis of (the) defendant's phones, (police) located numerous child sex abuse material files that depicted (the) defendant sexually abusing (the girls)," according to charging documents. "Defendant engaged in hands-on abuse over the course of several years demonstrating a pattern of predatory conduct, including grooming behavior."
The state has asked that the man be held in the Salt Lake County Jail without the possibility of posting bail pending trial.
