Burlington man charged with sexual abuse

Jan. 18--A 41-year-old Burlington man is being held on a $160,000 cash-only bond after being charged in Des Moines County District Court with molesting a child for more than 12 years.

Mark Farran, 130 Greenbrier Drive, appeared Wednesday before Des Moines County District Associate Judge Emily Dean on charges of second-degree sexual abuse, third-degree sexual abuse and lascivious conduct with a child.

Dean set his bond at $160,000 cash, including $100,000 for the second-degree abuse charge, a class B felony; $50,000 on the third-degree abuse accusation, a class C felony, and $10,000 on the lascivious conduct charge, a serious misdemeanor.

If convicted of all the charges, Farran faces up to 36 years in prison. He also would be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life.

Farran was arrested by Burlington police on an outstanding warrant shortly after 7 p.m. Tuesday at his home following a months-long investigation into the accusations.

According to an affidavit unsealed Wednesday, Farran has refused to cooperate in the investigation, declining to answer detectives' questions about the circumstances surrounding the allegations against him.

Police began investigating the case last July after the victim went to the police department and spoke with detectives. She told them she had been sexually assaulted by Farran since she was 12 years old.

The assaults included sexual intercourse and oral sex, court records state.

The victim told investigators the assaults occurred on a regular basis at various Burlington locations during the past 12 years, beginning with oral sex when she was 8 years old.

"The (victim) stated that after these acts occurred, Farran would be 'very nice' to her," court records state. "She would be allowed to do things with her friends."

According to court documents, the girl eventually told her mother about the sexual assaults and she confronted Farran.

"Farran admitted (to her mother) that he had had sexual encounters with the girl," court records state.

When asked by investigators why it took so long before she told anyone about the abuse, the victim, who is now in her 20s, said she feared he would hurt her or her family if she told anyone about the ongoing abuse.

Dean ordered Farran to next appear in court at 2 p.m.Jan. 26. She appointed the Des Moines County Public Defender's Office to represent him.

It is the policy of The Hawk Eye not to publish the names of alleged victims of sexual abuse and to avoid reporting stories in such a way that makes those people identifiable.

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