An Emporia man has been arrested and charged with illegal sexual activity with minors.
The Harrisonville, Missouri, Police Department says 25-year-old Austin Christopher Muse has been arrested on suspicion of:
*One count of statutory rape of attempted statutory rape, first-degree, of a person under age 14
*Two counts of statutory sodomy or attempted sodomy, deviate sexual intercourse with a person under age 14
*One count of statutory second-degree sodomy
*One count of enticement or attempted enticement of a child under age 17
*Three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor child
Harrisonville officers say they were told of two school-aged female juveniles who had been involved in sexual activity with an adult male. Officers later seized the juveniles’ cell phones and pulled data, exposing alleged evidence of several sex crimes in public places around Harrisonville. Student statements then led officers to a suspect and the vehicle he was driving. The suspect, later identified as Muse, was arrested after a traffic stop.
A social media post from Harrisonville Police says Muse used social media platforms to both “groom the victims and orchestrate all the crimes” as alleged.
Arraignment in the case is currently set for June 24.
Harrisonville Police have thanked the Cass County, Missouri, Prosecutor’s Office, as well as the Platte City, Missouri, Police Department and Cass County Sheriff’s Office for help with the investigation, but officers say their work in this case is not done. Officers say they wanted to share a case update in case there are additional victims not yet identified. Residents with information are asked to call the Harrisonville Investigations Unit at 816-380-8940.
