DA: Bucks County Man Groomed Girls To Believe He Was A Prophet From God
By Jim Melwert and Anita Oh
FEASTERVILLE, Pa. (CBS) -- Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub announced new charges against a Bucks County man accused of assaulting six young victims, all sisters, over the course of eight years.
More than a dozen new felony charges have been filed against 51-year-old Lee Kaplan who was found with eleven Amish girls living in his Feasterville home.
Officials say the alleged sexual abuse began in the Stolztfus' Lancaster County home where Kaplan had his own bedroom, and continued when the children moved to Kaplan's home.
It's not clear what the Stolztfus parents knew regarding the alleged abuse, but they face child endangerment, among other charges.
Weintraub says the challenge has been getting the girls to open up to investigators, as Kaplan had them believing he was a prophet from God.
"It saddens me and it sickens me. This man obviously groomed these children for a long time for a very explicit and horrible purpose."
The victims referred to Kaplan as "Lave" and told authorities they all believed they were his wives.
Kaplan was arrested in June when police found the girls living in his home.
Police say he confessed to fathering two of the children with one of the girls. That girl, prosecutors said, was given to Kaplan by her parents after he saved them from financial ruin.
Authorities say the alleged abuse of the girl began when she was 10. That's when Kaplan allegedly first invited her to sleep in his bed where he would be naked and touch himself; sex allegedly began at age 12.
"I think he should get everything he deserves. It's a sad situation and the poor children are the victims," says Jane Loun, a neighbor.
All of the reported victims are daughters of Daniel and Savilla Stoltzfus, who are in county jail.
Kaplan is not allowed to have any contact with the children or Stoltzfus parents. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for November 15.
