UTAH
Deseret News
By Pat Reavy @DNewsCrimeTeam
Published: July 7, 2017
MAPLETON — A former LDS Church bishop accused of sexually abusing at least two boys in his congregation has been charged.
Erik Wayne Hughes, 51, of Mapleton, was charged Friday in 4th District Court with two counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony; and tampering with a witness, a third-degree felony.
According to charging documents, Hughes touched the genitals of a 17-year-old boy at least twice in 2014. Then in June, after Hughes learned that the boy had told authorities about the incidents, he “approached a second victim … (and) advised the victim that he might be contacted by police, and told that victim what to say to ensure (Hughes) would not get into trouble. The second victim was also sexually abused by (Hughes) when he was 17 years old and a member of the defendant’s LDS ward,” the charges state.
According to police, one boy was 15 when the alleged abuse began. Both are now over 18. Both men also claim that Hughes may have drugged them by giving them a pill to relax, only to pass out and wake up to find Hughes abusing them, according to a police affidavit filed in 4th District Court.
Hughes was not charged Friday with anything in relation to the alleged druggings.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.